Artifacts of Zero
by Drakefire
Summary: Louise, more commonly known as Louise the Zero, wished for a divine, beautiful, wise, and powerful familiar. Am I, Isabella, any of that? Divine? Yeah, let's skip that. Beautiful? Well, that depends on who you ask. Wise? Most certainly. Powerful? When you can transform any weapon into the one of the thirty-six artifact weapon's of Azeroth, it's hard to be anything but powerful.
1. Summoning Day

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

_ is P.O.V. change

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

P.O.V. Isabella

It was a beautiful day outside, as I sat down at a coffee show, pulling my laptop and headphones out of my backpack. It wasn't all that often when it became this nice mid-winter in Kansas, and I wanted to make the most of. The laptop powered up quickly as I took a sip of the coffee I had ordered. She smiled as one of her favorite games, World of Warcraft, launched, quickly hopping into my guilds vent channel, plugging in the audio and microphone jack into the device, putting the headphones down over my ears, nearly canceling out any outside noise.

"What's up Linth?" a voice was heard through the headset, causing the girl to grin.

"Nothing much, Grim," I responded, earning a squeal for one of the few other girls in the guild.

"Linthice! Are you coming to join us for some mythic dungeons?" The discipline priest asked excitedly. Me, bubbed Linthice by my guildmates, chuckled.

"Sure Syla. My horiscope did say I was going to have a pretty boring day," I respounded, receiving a couris of yeses and excellents through vent.

"Let's get this show on the road, then," Grim said, sending out invites to group members. However, how little did the I know that my horoscope was terribly, terribly, wrong.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

*In Halkegina*

Meanwhile, on a whole other world, a young girl by the name of Louise Francoise Lu Blanc de La Valliere, or simply Louise if you didn't want to remember what had to be one of the longest names of all time, or by her peers, Louise the Zero. The small girl, whose body almost resembled that of a child's, being less than five foot and having a chest about as flat as a board, despite her age of sixteen. In addition to her childlike appearance, she had unnatural (by earth standards) pink hair and eyes. It was the day of the summoning ritual, and she was nervous enough as it was. Even more so, due to that fact that she hated to admit, because she couldn't even to the simplest spell to save her life! Transmutation spell, an explosion. A Fire spell, an explosion. Even the simplest spells would cause an explosion! It pissed her off to no end, and if she couldn't summon a familiar, even the simplest one, she would be kicked-out the Academy for sure. ' _A dragon!'_ the girl thought, ' _I'll summon a dragon! That will shut Kirchie up!'_ Her face turned into a frown. At least she didn't make that promise out loud. Now to see if she actually could.

P.O.V. Louise

Despite the bravado back at my room (and the other day, for that matter), I was that last person to summon a familiar. Of course, it was Kirchie that pointed the matter out. much to the my annoyance. ' _I just have to cast one spell. One spell that doesn't end in an explosion. Here goes nothing,'_ I though, focusing on my spell, "My servant that exists in this vast universe, my divine, beautiful, wise, powerful servant, I wish from the very bottom of my heart! Answer to my guidance and appear!" I practically shouted, wand held high.

BOOM! Just like with every other spell I had cast, the first notable event was the explosion, the shockwaves and force knocking over several students and familiars, along with throwing up a cloud of dirt and soot. I was too far into her own thoughts to notice what everyone around her was saying. ' _I really am a zero,'_ I thought, resisting the urge to cry, ' _I'll be expelled for_ _sure!'_ Despite that, I heard the gasp that begun to go up, pulling my eyes away from my shoes. ' _Did I really just summon a commoner for a familiar? I guess I really am a zero.'_ I could only guess what I summoned was a commoner. I could only see the back of it's head. It wore some type of short black shirt, and strangely some type of green earmuffs (I was guessing they were earmuffs. What else could they be?). My eyebrow began to twitch in a mixture of shock and no small part rage.

"Who are you?" I demanded approaching calmly, as my position as a noble demanded. My 'familiar' gave no response, focusing on the glowing thing in front of it, with the earmuffs plugged into the strange device. "Who are you?!" I snapped this time, temper rising. This time, I got a response, my familiar's left hand moving away from the device to grasp something. It attempted to grab something that obviously wasn't there, only to just notice that fact. It suddenly said something I couldn't understand, and whatever it was, it didn't appear to be aimed at me. ' _Great,'_ I thought, ' _Not only have I summoned a commoner as a familiar, it just happens to be insane.'_ The next thing I knew though, my familiar was a flurry of activity. Things I didn't understand flashed across the lit up portion of the device, as my familiar pulled the thin piece of equipment that connected the earmuffs to it, before taking the earmuffs themselves off and putting them in a pack that I had just noticed was on my familiar's right. It pulled a case out, put another strange item inside, before placing the box back into the pack, before finally returning its attention to the device that had held its attention, which whatever it is was no longer glowing and was simply black. It pulled down on the top part, until it covered a panel that was covered in strange ruins. Like everything else before it, the device went into the pack, which my familiar proceeded to close, (with a strange device no less). Her familiar then proceeded to sling the sack onto it's back, before standing up and turning around, its height making it overlook my height entirely, much to my annoyance. ' _It didn't even notice me, and I'm it's master!'_ venom was lased in each thought. ' _I'm going to have to punish it for this later.'_ I watched as my familiar raised its hands above it's head, before saying something completely incomprehensible. Her familiar looked around at her classmates and her teacher, before falling apart into a laughing fit.

"Shut up you stupid familiar!" I shouted. Surprisingly enough, my familiar actually stopped laughing, opening it's eyes and staring straight at me. The look was a mixture of shock, and, I blinked in an attempt to read it, but pity, or was it anger I saw in my familiar's green eyes. It's faced turned stern, before saying nothing but gibberish, holding up a single finger, before it's right hand shoot into a slip on the side of it's pants, before pulling out another strange device. After pushing a few buttons, each of which caused a beeping noise to come out the device, it put one end of the device near it's ear and the other near it's mouth, saying something into it, and almost seeming to wait for a response, before responding with even more of it's gibberish. Professor Colbert almost let out a sigh. In between my anger and my strange human familiar, things were getting out of hand. Waiting for a pause in the seemingly one sided conversation, he tapped his staff to the ground. A simple translation spell should suffice. He was about to interrupt, but the girl started talking again.

"So, Mom, do you want to hear the good news first or the bad news?"

P.O.V. Isabella

I huffed as more and more volume began leaking through my headphones. It was almost like someone was shouting right behind me! Talk about rude! ' _Well if you want to be inconsiderate, I have a little surprise for you,'_ I smirked, reaching towards the cup of coffee I had ordered. But when I went to grasp it, I only found open air. I grasped again, attempting to find my glass. And what was that tickling sensation on the underside of my right wrist. My eyes unfocus from the screen I had been paying attention to, noticing my previous surroundings were gone. No table. No people. No shop. No chair. And no tea. Scratch that, there were still people around, based on the muffled talking that made it through my headphones. Of course, it took me this long to figure out I wasn't in a chair anymore, and was rather sitting in a field. With a grey stone wall in front of my own face.

"Grim, I'm sorry but I'm going to have to call it quits for the time being," I sighed. ' _So much for that horoscope. Never using you again.'_

"Why?" the male asked through vent, voice slightly concerned.

"My horoscope lied to me, that's why," I said, "Hopefully this wouldn't take too long, but start without me if I take more than five minutes." I didn't even wait for a response, exiting out vent and sadly, out of WoW. I unplugged my headset, put my mouse into a container, and folded up my laptop, placing them all into my backpack, which was thankfully still with her. ' _It could bring my backpack, but it couldn't bring my glass of tea. Oh well, I shouldn't look a gift horse in mouth anyway. At least I haven't been attacked yet. That's about as good a sign as any.'_ I thought, slinging my backpack onto my shoulder, before pulling myself up to her nearly six feet in height, turning around, raising my hands.

"Take me to your leader!" I declare, taking a look around her. Most of the people she could see where children, two, maybe three years younger than myself. Not really children, but to me it was close enough. That, plus an older man in his late thirties, maybe early forties, but had a bald shot larger than her father's (who was losing hair by the year). Even he looked somewhat bewildered, and combined with my own joke, even one that only she seemed to understand, caused her to start laughing hysterically. ' _I've somehow gone from a shop merely a mile or two from my own home, and somehow I ended_ _in a place that doesn't understand a lick of english,'_ she thought, only adding more laughter into her fit. I could have gone for a minute or more, but I was interrupted by someone I had overlooked. It sounded like something similar to french (I had taken a latin class a few years back and could usually tell the languages that it gave birth too appart). I opened her eyes, meeting the almost teary pink eyes of Louise. ' _Holy shit, she has pink hair and eyes'_ was the first thought, and likely the first thing that would have came out of my mouth if I hadn't bit down on my tongue. They say that the eyes were windows into the soul, and this case was on expectation. The eyes looking at me spoke of anger, sadness, and pain, with little happiness. I blink. Hard. It was like she was looking a smaller version of me with long pink hair and pink eyes. ' _Well that just made things harder. She almost looks like she's at the end of her rope. Maybe I'm here for a reason. Maybe I'm here to help her. I can't just simply leave (could I even leave in the first place). Either way, I should probably call my parents before they call the police and I end up as another girl that goes missing that they simply can't find. Like hell I'm ending up as another statistic! Wait, can I even use my phone here? My laptop works, so I can't see why not.'_

"Look, I know you're mad, but can you please hold for one second. This is really important," I held up one finger, hopefully to help get the message across. Like hell I was play charades either. I fished my purple (ick) cell phone out of my jean's pocket, before dialing the number to my (former) home phone. A phone ringed a few times before my mother answered.

"Hello, who is this?" a voice came from the other end, bringing a smile to my face.

"Hey mom. What's up?" I asked, my voice wavering slightly. ' _This might be the last time I ever hear from my mom ever again.'_ She thought, almost bringing a tear to her eye.

"Isabella, is there something wrong?" my mom's concerned voice came from the other end.

"So, Mom, do you want to hear the good news first or the bad news?" I asked, thinking of how to break this without my mother freaking out.

"The bad news. It makes the good news sound better," my mom responded.

"The bad news is I have no idea where I am. The good news is I'm not in any danger," I said, before adding an ' _I think'_ in my thoughts.

"What do you mean you have no idea where you are? Didn't you go out for some coffee?" my mother demanded.

"Yeah, I did. And now I'm pretty sure I'm not in Kansas anymore. I'm talking about like Dorothy, not simply crossing a state line," I almost sighed. Did I really just drop a Wizard of Oz reference?

"Are you sure you just simply didn't notice? You can get pretty sucked into your games," my mother said worryingly. She was somewhat right. From what I would later understand, I had been so far into my games I didn't notice Louise calling for my. A matter a fact, I didn't even notice the portal that hovered in front of my face for a solid minute before it got tired of waiting and just simply brought me through.

"Mom you know exactly as well as I do if someone tried that," I almost shudder at the thought. At the first (and last) party I ever went too, I had been approached by someone who had gotten drunk and wanted some easy play. What he got as one of my knives in his crotch. That was not fun to explain to my parents, (but the case was thankfully written off as self defense).

"I do recall," my mom said before she was interrupted by someone else.

"I never would have guess you'd summoned an insane plebian," The girl taunted, loud enough for everyone to here. The girl, in question had a massive bust size (impossibly so), which was so going to cause her back pain in a few years (if not already), one of the strangest shades of red as her hair color, and what looked like some type of spray on tan.

"Hold on mom," I pull the phone away from my face, covering the receiver. "Can it! Adult's are trying to have a conversation over here!"

P.O.V. Kirchie

This had gone from a just another moment of teasing Louise to the girl's commoner familiar trying to embarrass me infront of everyone! That commoner dared talk to me that way! And a familiar no less!

"Louise tell your familiar to shut up now!" I shouted at her.

P.O.V. Louise

I blinked in surprise. First, either my familiar was pulling off the most elaborate ruse ever, trying to appeal to some people's emotions (at this point it was obvious that it knew that it could be understood). And now it was even calling out my archrival! Either I already had passive control over it, or my familiar was a perfect match for me. I was about to respond in kind, but the vigorous head shake, the apparently the universal symbol for no, cut me off. My unbound familiar lowered its voice voice so only I could hear it.

"Her kind lives off of getting a response. Don't grace her with one. Besides," the smirk in her tone was more than evident. "I have a much better one than you could ever give." And with that my familiar did one thing that surprised everyone. It was flipping Kirchie off.

P.O.V. Isabella

I shoot a look at the insolent redhead with a look of what could be equated to pure rage. From the looks of it, she had found the girl's chief tormenter. I had great disdain for people like her. Picking on people who she deemed lesser, which created another cycle of abuse that the first person abused would inflict on someone else to try and gain back what was lost. I was going to end that cycle. Not today, hopefully, but hopefully soon I would be able to put the girl in her place.

"Mom, I'll call you back or sent pictures when I find out more, ok. I love you," I smiled, bringing the phone back to my ear.

"Love you too, sweetheart," my mom finished, before hanging up the phone.

P.O.V. Kirchie

I was beyond seething! This, this commoner not only just flipped me off, she did it with the most sarcastic apology face ever! She acted like it was an accident, and all the while Louise did nothing! Did she not have any shame? I raised my wand, fire beginning to form around the tip of her wand.

"You!" I snarled.

P.O.V. Isabella

"You!" the redhead snarled, having drawn some type of short stick, with flames already licking around the tip.

"Get behind me, now!" I snap, positioning myself between the pinkette and the girl seething in rage.

"Kirchie, enough!" the teacher (I assumed he was a teacher), shouted.

"So that's your name," I snarl angrily, rage beginning to roil off me in waves, "Listen up Kirchie, because you are about to do something I guarantee you'll regret. Here's the thing. Right now I'm pissed off as hell, and if you think I'm scared of a girl with an ego the size of your chest and a flaming stick, you have another thing coming." My hand drops lower, pulling out one of my two throwing knives from it's pocket. If there was one thing I love about guy clothing, it's the fact that it actually had pockets!

"Enough, both of you!" The teacher shouted, "Please stand down miss, and Kirchie, you should know better." I drop my knife right back into my pocket as requested. While it takes her nearly a minute to for her to cancel whatever spell she was cooking up. "Louise, can you please continue the ritual." ' _Wait, it still isn't done? Might as well see where this leads.'_

"And I will also request that you do not harm any of our student's" the man said, turning to her. ' _So he is a teacher. Good to know.'_ I thought to myself. "Are we clear?"

"I, Isabella Lin Whelan, swear to not harm student nor faculty of this institution unless I am attacked in a manner that could cause bodily harm or death to myself, and if so I will defend myself in a non lethal fashion," I say left hand raised above my head in a flat palm, while my right was placed over my heart.

"We are going to have to get that in writing, then," the professor said, clearly relieved that I wasn't going to go invisible slasher on the student body.

"I'll make sure to read the fine print," I joked, causing him to crack a slight grin.

"Professor Colbert," he said, extending his hand.

"Isabella," I shook his hand, "But Isabell or Izzy work just as well. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

P.O.V. Louise

I almost yell back at my familiar for ordering me to get behind her, until I noticed Kirchie's ignited wand. ' _Oh no. My familiar has already angered a noble! Kirchie wouldn't be able to take something like this out on me, but to a commoner should could as she please!'_ I thought in panic. I have to do something! However, my familiar didn't seem to care at all, as it spoke, very word laced in venom.

"So that's your name," it spat, rage coming off it, almost like it was possessed, "Listen up Kirchie, because you are about to do something I guarantee you'll regret. Here's the thing. Right now I'm pissed off as hell, and if you think I'm scared of a girl with an ego the size of your chest and a flaming stick, you have another thing coming." I wanted to immediately curl up behind it and stay out of sight. It didn't help that her familiar pulled a knife out of it's pocket (I was going to have to stop calling it an it as well, or she might end up hurting me). ' _What was her familiar trying to do? Get herself killed? Doesn't she understand that Kirchie is a noble?'_ If it wasn't for the fact I was hidden behind my familiar, my fellow students would see the panic and fear on my face! Slowly my brain slow began piecing things together. The strange cloths. The strange devices. The fact it took a translation spell for anyone to understand her. The fact that she was talking back to a noble. That I asked for a familiar that existed somewhere in the universe. ' _By the Founder. Is it possible that humans existed outside of Halkeginia?'_ I shook of the thought. That's impossible. Right?

Thankfully, Professor Colbert quickly regained control of the situation, getting both my familiar, which happened to be Isabellalinwhelan, (weird name), who also said Isabella, Isebell, or Izzy would be appropriate (with a name like Isabellalinwhelan, I don't blame her for shortening it). And this brought forth something else that confused me completely. How did she go from practically threatening to kill someone (a noble at that), to being perfectly civil? She goes from threatening Kirchie to calmly chatting, exchanging names, and even joking with Professor Colbert in less than a minute! If I had any doubts to the mental stability of my familiar, this did nothing but confirm it. It could be worse, right? However, it was time to finish the binding ritual. I slowly approached her from behind, taping on her shoulder, getting my familiar's attention. She turned around with a slight smile on her face.

"Yes?" she asked, looking down at her. For first time, I noticed how tall my familiar was compared to me, easily towering over me. That was going to make things more difficult.

"We need to finish the summoning ritual," I said, before almost pausing. ' _Did I say that to rudely? What if I matter her mad and she simply ups and leaves?'_ My thoughts began to fly like wildfire in panic. She almost threatened Kirchie to death because the redhead had angered her. What would happen to me if I did the same? That fear was quickly dispelled with a grin.

"Sure. I think we've procrastinated for long enough," her familiar ask cheerfully, "What do you need me to do?"

"I end you to be still, close your eyes, and lower yourself down a bit," I said, a hint of nervousness I'm sure she managed to pick up. I'm a noble! I shouldn't show nervousness in front of a commoner! But here I was, both nervous and embarrassed with what was about to happen. My familiar nodded, lowering herself down to one knee, almost like she was about to happen.

"My name is Louise Francoise Lu Blanc de La Valliere. Pentagon of the five elemental powers, grant your blessings upon this creature and bind it as my familiar," I chanted, before nervously pecking the girl on the lips.

P.O.V. Isabella

So that's why she told me to close my eyes. Louise was quite nervous (not surprisingly, this was likely the girls first kiss, something I felt slightly guilty about taking). It didn't help matters much that few male students made whistling noises, with even one going as far as to say that was hot. I opened my eyes a few seconds after I felt her lips leave mine, preparing myself to shut the boys up myself, as a felt a tingling sensation on my left hand. I quickly took a look at it, noticing strange writing seeming to appear along the top of my hand. The tingling quickly turned into pain, though, clapping my jaw tight to prevent myself from sounding off every single swear word I knew. The pain became even more intense, causing me to double over in pain, my right hand gripping my left wrist in an attempt to keep me from lashing out uncontrollably in pain.

"Son of a monkey's uncle," I snarl, fighting to remain conscious. The pain faded as suddenly as it came, as I flop to the ground, gasping for breath. The discomfort of lying on my backpack was nothing compared to the pain I just went through.

"Are you ok?" Louise asked, concern filling her voice, offering me her hand.

"I'll live," I said, my natural snarkiness returning, taking her hand as Louise helped me back onto my feet, which happened to unsteady from the pain. That hurt more than the time I was stung by a bee or when I got my tattoo! Combined!

"May I see your familiar rune?" Professor Colbert asked as he approached.

"Sure," I said, holding out my left hand, "You mean this thing, right?" Colbert nodded, taking a look at the strange rune's that now decorated the top of my hand. Something flashed in his eyes. Recognition? Worry? Fear? It was interesting, anyway. I wonder what makes these things so important? Oh well, more things for me to do. Especially since I have nothing to do anyway beside keeping in shape. I mean, how am I expected to attend college classes from another dimension!

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*Louise's room*  
P.O.V. Louise

It took a lot longer than it should have to return to my room. It didn't help that my familiar was looking around at everything constantly, almost like she was on a mission to explore every single nock and cranny of the Academy. ' _She acted seriously, and now she is acting like a curious child! Does she have some type of split personality?'_ After finally getting to room, she pulls out the strange device again! At least she held the door open for me, but I wanted answers!

"What are you doing?" I snap, despite all the evidence of getting angry with her being the last thing I should do.

"I'm dropping my college classes," Isabella said calmly, not looking up from her device.

"What?" I question in shock. Just what was she talking about?

"Where I'm from, most people go to school after high school to further their education, myself included. But it's pretty hard to take classes when you aren't even on the same plain of existence," She paused, almost lost in thought, before grinning slightly. "Well, looks like mom and dad got that squared away already." Isabella quickly closed the device, still smiling.

"I'm willing to bet you have a hundred questions," she grinned, "fire away." I raise my wand slightly. Did she really want that? Based on the look on her face, that was a no.

"It's a figure to speech," the brunette said, waving her hands frantically. I didn't think Isabellalinwhelan wanted me to 'fire away' as she put it. Further proof she was either insane or really from another world.

"So, Isabellalinwhelan, are you really from another world?" I ask, staring straight at her.

"Yep. I'm from Earth. A place where magic doesn't exist," the brunette quipped with a smile, "And you don't need to call by my full name." I was about to ask another question, before the last part dawned on me.

"What?" I said, dumbfounded. ' _Only noble's have first and last names! Have I summoned a Noble by mistake?'_ The last part quickly left my mind. She didn't have any magic, so how could she be a noble? But then how did she have a last name? Oh, right. She's from another world.

"Yep," my familiar said, paying no heed to the fact I was lost in thought, "Isabella is my first name, Lin is my middle, and Whelan is my last. Everyone on Earth has one." I almost blinked in surprise. ' _Everyone! Do they even have noble's there?'_

"So do you have any noble's where you're from?" I ask hesitantly. If she was really from a different world, with no magic and no nobles, it would go far to explain her behavior with Kirche after her summoning.

"In America, no, and I'm pretty sure a handful monarchical governments that still exist are small countries in Europe, so a little bit of both," Isabella shrugged, before continuing, "And in America, all people are supposed to be treated equally. Equal voice in the government, both on the local and federal level." My mouth drops to the floor. No nobles! No King or Queen! How did anything get done!?

"Simple really," Isabella grinned, either reading my mind or reading the shock on my face, "Congress, which has two houses, writes the laws, and when it reaches a majority, it's sent the President. The President can either sign it into law or send it back. If he sends it back, it can be can be overturned by by a two-thirds majority vote. Sometimes laws are challenged, in which they might make it to the Supreme Court, which can overturn any law if it declares unconstitutional. Justices are appointed by the President and confirmed by Congress, while the President and congressmen are elected by the people." She rubbed the back of her head, eyes closed. "Let's not talk about political systems though. One of our brain's might fry out." She opened her eyes to see the look of shock and utter disbelief written on my face (a look a noble like myself shouldn't have, but hear about such a place, it was the only reaction that made sense). She giggled slightly (at me or simply because she found the situation humorous, I couldn't tell), before getting up and walking to the window, before letting out a small gasp. My familiar took the strange purple device from before, pointing it at the window, before one end emitted a flash of light. She pushed a few buttons, before slipping the device back into her pocket.

"What is that thing, anyway?" I ask, curiosity taking hold me once again. "For a world that apparently doesn't have magic, you sure to have some interesting stuff."

"This?" she asked, flipping the purple thing back out of her pocket, twirling it around in her hand. "It's a cellphone. It allows me to talk, send pictures and messages to anyone in the world. Or outside this world. And don't ask me what it means, because I have no idea. Because it shouldn't work. Neither should my laptop. I literally have no idea how I'm still getting internet and cell reception." The device lit up for a second, and she looked down at something on it, before her mouth dropped.

"Full charge!" my familiar practically shouted in shock, "I left home with a half charge! This doesn't make any sense!" She let out a groan, followed by a yawn. She was clearly tired, and so was I. It had been a long and surprising day for me, and as much as I didn't want to admit it, hers was merely an intensified version of mine. She was my familiar now, but at the same time, she was still human. The odds of her listening to me all the time were slim to none, and while part of me wanted to be angered by that, it was also apart of who she was, and I was going to have to deal with it (even though I'm not going to show it to the others).

"Sorry, but I don't have a second bed," I said nervously. Part of me knew that she wasn't going to try and kick me out of mine, but the summoning ritual seemed to flash through my head. Me, a noble with the only talent I had was casting explosions, had a familiar that did not care about nobility, and didn't know anything about magic. Hopefully there wouldn't be a repeat of what happened earlier today. I didn't want my familiar getting hurt. Isabella responded with what had to be her signature smile (if such a thing even existed).

"It's fine. It's not like you were expecting a human or anything. But I do expect a bed at some point or another," she joked, placing her pack down next to the pile of hay in the corner, before pulling out an oversized shirt and a red and blue blanket out of it. Isabella then proceeded to let gravity to the rest of the work, flopping down into the hay pile. She suddenly threw the massive blanket over herself, covering a frenzy of activity, that quickly spat out her pants and her original shirt. It did give me enough time to change out of my school uniform and into my nightgown, before flopping unceremoniously onto my bed.

"Goodnight Louise," my familiar's head popped out from underneath the blanket, grinning before letting out another yawn.

"Goodnight Isabell," I yawn, falling onto my pillow before slipping into unconsciousness.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x


	2. The Challenge

A little Author's note before I began. The first three chapters for this story are going to be released quite quickly, due to the fact I am currently on spring break. Once I return to school, expect updates to slow. I'll update when I can, but I sadly will be unable to commit to a schedule. Despite this, I hope you all stick around.

Now to answer the reviews.

Alexkehling: Isabella's cell service comes from Kricket, surprising enough. In all honesty, the reason her cellphone works is because I couldn't come up with a good enough reason for her laptop to work and not her cellphone. She is going to figure out her powers during her fight with Guchie (which has had more iterations than anything else so far). Lastly, I'm trying to keep the fourth wall as intact as possible for this story, even though I cannot deny the humor of what would happen if she did.

Boyzilla: Thanks! Hopefully I don't disappoint.

Now on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

P.O.V. Isabella

I let out a yawn as rays of sunlight touched my face. Wait, what? My body shoot up like a rocket. My bed was against a wall, and was nowhere near a window! I open my eyes in borderline panic as yesterday slowly came back to me. The trip the coffee shop , appearing in another world, becoming a pink haired girl's familiar.

' _I'm a dork,'_ I thought to myself, stretching myself out and scratching my itchy back. I had spent the night on a stack of hay. The pinkette (Louise was her name), hadn't told my to get her up, so I might as well do some stuff while I could. ' _I could wash my clothes,'_ I thought, before realizing the biggest flaw of that plan.

' _Damn it! I only have one pair of pants!'_ Add that to list things I need. Multiple pairs of pants. Which was going to likely lead into a conversation of why I don't wear skirts or dresses. Or girl clothing in general (I hated the stuff. Guy clothing made sense and actually had pockets). So washing clothing was out. Go out and explore the castle? I shook my head. I had better things to do with my time than get lost. The school was a borderline castle in terms of size, that much was certain. I took a look at my laptop that I had left out overnight. I sigh. It's not like I had anything else to do. I quickly booted up the device. Now what should I do? I needed to do something quite, so I didn't wake up Louise. I probably shouldn't play something really bloody either. I had no idea her sensitivity to violence or blood where, but I expected her to be very sensitive. After all, she herself was noble, like everyone else here, and if that was the case, then I expected her to be quite sheltered. Which might lead to problems later down the line. In fact, it was likely I'm the first person to not give a shit about statis positions and such. Louise had already earned my slight pity, and it was currently my job to not only protect her, but also to be her support. Something told me in my gut that she was going to need both. I sat down as World of Warcraft loaded. Loging into my main, Linthice, running throuhg my garrison, collecting the rewards from all the stuff my followers did. Boring, but it brink in a nice chunk of in game money. Next I simply qued up for a heroic dungeon. It took about ten minutes, with the overgeared group crushing everything in our path (I remember in the beginning of the expansion, these dungeons used to be hard). It was Monday, so the raid's hadn't reset yet, so I simply couldn't go mount farming and because it was early morning, nobody in my guild was on, either going to their jobs or to college (I wasn't the only college student in the guild). I guess a game of Hearthstone will have to do for the time being. I exited out of WoW, before entering a do or die battle with my murloc deck pitted against a warlock. The match quickly became intense, sucking me ever inward. It got to the point of which, that once again, I was a oblivious to everything going on around me. Including the awakening of Louise.

P.O.V. Louise

I awaken with a yawn, eyes slightly glazed over. I look over to the pile of hay in the corner of the room, only to find it empty. I began to panic ' _Did she leave already?'_ I began looking around in panic. The pack was still there. And the large device was flipped up. Oh. She was once again looking at the device, deeply entranced by whatever was happening. Isabella was staring at the screen a look a determination written on her face, eyes crossed and her right foot tapping away like a woodpecker. She also wasn't wearing pants, a fact that I noticed as a I got up, getting a perfect shot of her legs (but not her underwear, thankfully), despite the rising heat on my face. What was my familiar doing? I go to her side, looking at whatever held her interest to intently. As I looked and watched the lit up portion of the device, I failed to understand what was going on. It was some type of game involving cards, that much was certain. My familiar was in control of the things on the bottom half of the screen, and was seemingly winning. After dragging a few things on her side of board onto an enemy portrait, which caused it to explode.

"So what are you doing?" I ask, as my familiar finally noticed my empty bed in a slight panic.

"ACK!" She screamed, her knees slamming into the table, almost tipping it over, only to be prevented by her body doubling over in pain. "Mother clucker! Son of a!" She was trying her best not to swear from the pain. "Louise, please don't scare me like that again! Ever!" I had to bite back the urge to laugh. Isabella pouted slightly, rubbing her knee, a clear attempt at soothing the pain.

"I was playing Hearthstone," Isabella said, rubbing her knee. The area was definitely going to bruise. ' _Maybe I should take her a healer,'_ I thought as my familiar continued to rub her knee, hissing in pain.

"Do you need me to take you to a healer?" I ask, concerned. I knew my familiar was tough, after all she did remain conscious (mostly) throughout the binding ritual.

"Thanks," she winced, "but I'll live." She finally put her feet back on the ground, before stretching herself out, standing up out of the chair and bring herself to her full height. The girl's oversized shirt came halfway down her thighs. Why did she even have a shirt that big? "I'll explain the rules later if you want, but right now I'm," a rumbling was heard, most likely her stomach, "hungry." The last part really didn't need saying after that stomach growl. After that we wordlessly changed, Isabella taking off the oversized sleepshirt. While we were facing opposite ways, I took a quick peek at my familiar (good luck getting me to admit it, though). The first thing I noticed was a strange red and black symbol on her back. It was strange, like some type of drawing on the skin. However, I wasn't going to ask, because that would mean she knew I looked. ' _Why am I so embarrassed? We're both girls!'_ I shook the thoughts out of my head, getting dressed myself. Compared to my familiar did, which was simply throw on the shirt and pants combination from the day before (I was going to have to get her some clothes, or offer her mine).

"Do you need any clothes?" I ask hesitantly. My familiar definitely didn't seem to like girls clothing, or anything girly, for that matter. In fact, her hair was shorter than some guys!

"I'm good, but thank you for asking, Louise," Isabella grinned, her stomach letting out another rumble.

"Oh," I stammered, unsure of how to put what I was about to say. I hated to think about what the other's would say with my familiar talking to me in such a causal manor.

"Don't worry," she grinned, once again seeming to read my mind, "I can play the part of a good little pet. Woof, woof."

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*Dining Hall of Tristain Academy of Magic*

P.O.V. Louise

For someone who was hungry, it was certainly hard to actually her into the Dining Hall. I was going to have to get a servant to take her on a tour of the grounds, or do it myself. Actually, it would be better for my sanity if I did it myself. My familiar might began demanding that a remember the name of every servant we come across. By the girl's standards, it would seem a reasonable request. But to me the simple idea of all people are equal was simply impossible. I'd hate to see how she'd react to many nobles, and if Kirche was any indication, she was going to get hurt. I didn't want my familiar to get hurt. At all. But hopefully she was going to be more level headed in the future. Someone else wasn't going to be able to save her the next time something like this happen. I walked down one of the isles, looking for a place to sit, ignoring the whispers I heard, even though my familiar did not. I caught her sending a look of murder at Kirche, again! Thankfully, she missed it. Ultimately, I found us a place to sit. It was almost like the area into itself was prepared for us, due the fact there was a smaller chair next to one of the normal chairs. Isabella, without waiting on a single word from me, pulled out the larger of the two chairs, pushing it back in after I sat down. She promptly sat down, in the smaller chair, which was hardly enough to support her frame. Not that it seemed to bother her, hunger overwhelming all her sense, quickly eating everything on her plate, her movements nothing more than a blur. Thankfully, the girl had table manners, actually using a fork and knife to cut her meat into pieces, even eating more than a few pieces of fruit before I could barely get started! She at least stopped after that, her eyes seeming to scan the room in a paranoid manner. Somehow, thing payed off, because just as a finished I heard a thunking noise and a clucker behind me, only to find my familiar somehow but her cutting knife into a pastry that someone had thrown at me (my familiar didn't notice who did it, something that I couldn't tell was good or bad). After that though, we both thought it was likely best to move on. My familiar wasn't happy (naturally) that someone had tried to attack me. However, practically blocking me from the side of the room where the pastry was thrown from might have been a tad bit overkill.

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*Outside, in one of the courtyards*

P.O.V. Isabella

"So you gain a mana crystal each turn, to a normal maximum of ten, and expend them on spells, creatures, or your hero power each turn," Louise said, trying to make sense of the basic mechanics of Hearthstone, which was interesting if nothing else. "And your goal is run the opponent out of health, which can't go any higher than thirty."

"That's the basics," I grin, looking at the confusion on the pinkettes face. It really was the cold hard baseboard when it came to Hearthstone. I didn't play the game all that much, myself. It wasn't that things were hard, I just didn't play enough to keep up with the common strategies, nor did I want to spend actual money on the game, so I ended up saving what little in game gold I managed to collect and spend it on a pack or two if I felt I was lagging behind. It allowed me to build some pretty niche decks, including my murloc paladin deck, which used two Murloc Knight's as the core base. My friends hated the deck with a burning passion. Especially when Murloc Knight's started spawning even more Murloc Knight's, which happened more often than one would expect. Combine that with bubble's and you were set for life.

"But what's stopping someone from just flat out attacking, ignoring anything you summon?" She asked. ' _Dear God, she's already discovered face hunters,'_ I thought to myself.

"Some cards force enemy creatures to target it over all other things, and most decks usually have a handful of them just incase," I said, hoping to the turn the conversation away from the awful, awful face hunters. "Some decks could get away with something like that, but not most of them." I blinked, something catching my eye. I almost smirked. "Well doesn't that just take the cake," I grin, watching a blonde haired teenager being shouted at by two girls, one with brown hair, the other with blonde.

"What are you … Oh," Louise said, following my line of vision. Even from here I could already begin to hear the shouting of the two girls. And from the sound of it, the boy, Guiche, had apparently been two timing behind the two girl's backs, and they had just found out. At the same time. I wasn't one for drama, but this? This was simply the guy getting his just deserts. I did almost wince though as one of the two, the blonde, slapped him across the face with enough force to knock him on his ass. However, as I thought before, he deserved it. It was his own fault for dating two girls at the same time. It didn't seem he liked that, however before beginning to shout at one of the nearby maids. My mouth that had been smirking just seconds before turned into a scowl. ' _It's your own damn fault, you brat. You better not be about to do what I think you're about to do,'_ I think to myself. He began to raise his hand to strike the girl. Fuck that shit. Louise was going to kill me for this later, I could tell. But that'll be a bridge I cross when I get there.

"Hey! Asshole!" I shout, storming towards the two, getting Guiche's attention quite easily. I closed the distance faster than one would have expected, my newfound rage acting as the fuel.

"Aw, Louise's commoner familiar," he said sarcastically, "You're just about to see me punish this girl for sullying the reputation of two young ladies." My eye twitched in rage. That was his twisted logic in this! I positioned myself in between him and the girl, who was quivering in fear.

"If anyone sullyed anyone's reputation, it would be you sullying their, asshole," I snap, fury taking hold (let it be said that a person's familiar reflected certain qualities of their summoner, and Louise got someone with a situational temper that rivaled her own). "And then you proceed to try and salvage your pride by blaming it on someone who can't defend themselves. I'll be frank, I've seen pieces of shit with more nobility than you. If you'd have any amount of common sense in the brain of yours, you would apologize to all three of them. Now!" The look on Guiche's face betrayed any type of emotion he was feeling. Louise was quickly approaching, no doubt startled out of her mind. Of course, she had never seen me when my temper was flaring and cranked up to ten. People like him pissed me off to no end. They held themselves to be better than others simply because of lucky birth. They were simply lucky to be born into a family with money and power. No more, no less. Guiche, on the other hand, turned to face Louise.

"Aw, Louise the Zero," he said, barely containing his rage. "It seems you are having trouble with teaching your familiar proper respect." He then sucker-slapped me across the face.

P.O.V. Louise

I almost flinched. ' _By Brimir, did Guiche really just slap her?!'_ I was shooked. While my familiar was most certainly vulgar and rude, Guiche should be able to handle himself better than that. He's a noble! I would have scolded him, but Isabella's laughter bet me to it.

"Turn around and look at me," the pitch was cold and low, sounding almost borderline inhuman. "In a second you're about to realize how fucked up you are." I watch in horror as Isabella slams her fist into Guiche's face. Even from a few feet away, I heard the crunching of bone.

P.O.V. Isabella

My fist slammed into Guiche's nose, bringing the noise of his nose breaking to my ear's. And naturally, he flopped against the ground. He was knocked onto his ass by a slap from a twig (talk about being a continuation of the squishy mage archetype). Not only did I actually put my body weight behind my blow, that body weight was practically nothing but muscle. Even if I did slap him back (something that would be very out of character). He looked up at me in shock, almost like he didn't expect that to happen.

"You slapped me," I spat, "what did you expect me to do, stand there and take it?" This child! I know my temper was getting the best of me, but he was pissing me off to no end!

"I was going to have you ask to beg for forgiveness," He snarled, talking pretty well for trying to keep the blood inside his crushed nose. "But now you leave me no choice. I challenge you to a duel!" Multiple gasps went up, including Louise.

"Guiche, you can't!" She shouted, "duel's are forbidden!" ' _Interesting. Que loophole in three, two, one,'_ I thought.

"Between nobles, yes, but not between a commoner and a noble!" He shouted, just finally pulling himself back onto his feet. Louise was about to say something else, but I cut her off.

"I accept," I say, "I need to stay in shape, and you need to be taken down a peg. It's a win-win for everyone. Well, except for you, that is."

"You can't!" Louise shouted, "He'll kill you!" I snorted.

"He'll try. And he will fail," I snarl, "and master, can you hold onto my shirt. I only have two, and I don't want to get it covered in blood." I didn't even give her time to respond, revealing my four pack and back tattoo, alongside my oversized sporting bra, which was nothing more than a glorified tank top with a midriff, which was the whole point. I shifted myself into a combat stance, pulling out my butterfly knife out of my pocket.

P.O.V. Louise

' _By the founder, my familiar has abs. Why does a girl have abs? Wait, why am I worrying about that! Isabella, you better stay safe!'_

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And that's a wrap on chapter two. Sorry about the cliffhanger, but it's something I wanted to do. So what do you guys think? Did I make any grammatical errors? Canonical errors? Feel free to comment.

And in other news, what weapon do you think Isabella will summon in the next fight. It's a dagger or daggers, which means it's either the Kingsbane dagger combination, the Fangs of the Devourer combination, the Fangs of the First Nightsaber, or Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire.

Make sure to drop off a review, and I hope you enjoyed.


	3. Xal'alath, Blade of the Black Empire

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

_ is P.O.V. change

Review answering time!

Boyzilla: Thanks, I'll make sure to keep that in mind in the upcoming chapters. Louise's out of charterness is more of the fact she more than slightly intimidated by her familiar. Isabella did pull out a knife on Kirche, and Louise's only talent is her "worthless" explosions. The reaction was really more or less planned for this chapter, since Isabella has really just pulling Louise along at full speed, not really giving her time to think or simply question the how or why.

PEJP: When Isabella is referring to no magic, she is simply assuming. She has never heard of and never will hear about magic on Earth, and as such, thinks it's an impossibility (whether it is or isn't is up the reader). The reason I used Halkeginia for the scene transfer is because I have no idea what the name of the world is, and just simply used the name of the continent. Sorry if that caused any confusion.

Potato Man: Thank you.

PEJP: I shall keep that in mind. Chapter two was finished and posted later on in the night, so the difference likely slipped my notice. And thank's, I needed to find something for that, because my _ wasn't working for unknown reasons.

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P.O.V. Isabella

My body was spring tight like coil, taking a combat stance, butterfly knife still concealed within my reverse grip. While the grip was normally considered weaker than a normal grip, I knew enough about some knifes actually were better off in a reverse grip than a normal, including my butterfly knife. While the blade wasn't exactly long, but it could, in theory, take off most of a person's fingers, if used in a horizontal slash. While most dagger's were made for stabbing, puncturing key parts of the body, some, like my butterfly, could be very easily used to slice and dice, much like a sword. When I got it, I had considered that overkill. Even now, I still do. A simple steak knife may not look like much but I learned first hand that a knife could mess you up. And it was beginning to seem like I was going to have to teach Guchie the hard way.

' _Now what was my plan of attack here?'_ I thought to myself. I was in a world of magic now, so Murphy's Law needed to be applied here. ' _His familiar is that oversized mole with the massive eyes. So likely he had something to do with earth, stone, and maybe metals. Could he make his own sword and fight me like that? No, I think I convinced him of fighting me up close is a bad idea. Throw pebbles and rocks at me that I can easily dodge? Doubt it. So what is he going to do?'_ Thankfully, I didn't have to be kept waiting. He flourished the rose, which was apparently his wand, a single petal falling from it, creating a small circle of light, as a metallic humanoid seemed to float out of the ground. Now that was something interesting.

"My name is Guiche the Bronze," he said with a smirk, "therefore a bronze Valkyrie golem will be your opponent." The bronze creature looked quite feminine (unsurprisingly), complete with a winged helmet and a spear in its right hand. If I remembered my history right, Valkyrie where female warriors who decided who lived and who died on the field of battle. However, it was the bronze part that interested me the most. Bronze, while it was a decent metal, could not hold up to a steel weapon. But in my case, that steel weapon was a knife. Is was really not in the mood to hack it into pieces, and deal with whatever else he could do. If I could get my hands on the spear, though. I had no idea how to use a spear in combat, but I did know how to use a bow staff (thank you martial arts).

"I kind of figured you didn't have the balls to fight me yourself," I taunted, twirling my butterfly knife in my right hand, keeping the blade hidden behind myself. My goal was to get my hands on the spear the Valkyrie had, which would make my fight much easier, so long as the spear held together, and to disarm it, I was going to need to get that spear to actually be used. Which meant I had to Guiche even more pissed off than he already was. I had to want him to actually kill me, and it seemed to be working. The Valkyria charged forward, spear pointed forward in what I assumed was an attempt to impale me. I darted forward, fainting that I was going to meet it head on, before suddenly shifting to the left. I let out a hiss of pain as the spear glanced my side. However, I gave as good, if not better, than what I took. If that Valkyrie was a normal human, it would be missing four out of it's five fingers.

' _This is why I took off my shirt,'_ I thought, sparing a glance at the damage the spear did. It wasn't a bad wound, really. It took off a bit of skin, and was going to leave one hell of a scar, but that was something I would live with. The Valkyria and I spun around, facing each other again. This time, I would go for the disarm. It charged as I held my ground, throwing my butterfly knife into the air. The Valkyria looked up, following the path of the weapon. I didn't know if Guiche had control of the creature, but if he did, then he was a bigger idiot than I thought. That or he was very overconfident.

"Never take your eye's off your enemy!" I shout, dodging the blind lunge from the brass construct. I grabbed it, using all my muscle to lift it up before throwing it into the ground. My effort was rewarded with the sound of a snap, the mitten like hand of the Valkyrie flying off, alone with the spear. I caught my dagger as it fell, before rushing over to my new airborne weapon. I plucked it out of the air, twirl it around for slight dramatic effect, seeing as how the Valkyrie was having trouble pulling itself up, only having one hand and a singler thumb. Guiche's face wore a look of shock and likely slight fear.

"You can't do that!" He shouted, sounding desperate.

"Of course I can. You gave it a weapon, I simply obtained it," I smirk still not turning away from the now standing Valkyrie. It seemed a little be more cautious now. Not that it really mattered. I had a spear that could be used as a bow staff. It charged forward, attempting to hit me with a left hook. I block with the spear tip facing down, creating a ringing sound as bronze clashed against bronze. The block was unexpected, knocking it off balance, giving me an opening to attack. I bring the weapon around for a high strike, nearly forgetting about the speartip. A simple blow that normally would have simply resulted in a dented head became a massive gouge across it's face, and what I'm assuming were its eyes. Based on it's reacting, I'm guessing I hit it's eyes. Better take advantage while I still could. I darted forward, impaling it at the waist, using it like a lever as I pushed upwards. At the same time, I launched multiple push kick's at it's torso. The bronze creation slowly gave way underneath the onslaught, metal letting out a groan before it split in half. The thing flopped around like a fish out of water for a few seconds, before finally stilling.

"Impossible!" Someone from within the crowd shouted. During the heat of the fight, I had failed to notice how large the crowd at gotten. Easily a few dozen students had gathered, a combination of purple, black, and brown cloaks (how I never noticed before hand that each student had a cloak color that separated them by year, I don't want to know).

"Done yet, Guiche?" I taunted again, "Or do you have anything else in that bag of magic tricks?" The boy's face was caught between red with rage and white with disgust. Why the disgust? I took a look at the wound in my side once again. It certainly hadn't improved. The strain of my movements seemed to have aggravated the wound, causing it to widen slightly, and it had begun to leak more blood.

' _Wasing this out of my jeans is going to take so long,'_ I groan internally. The odds of him actually seeing blood before this were slim to none, which explained why he was so disgusted by the sight of the stuff. Ironically enough, it had been the same for me. The first, (and thankfully the only time up until yesterday) I had to pull out a knife to for expressed purpose of hurting somebody, I was forced to stab the person. I almost threw up after that. Hopefully this helped him see that this wasn't a game, and he shouldn't be so willing to kill someone for telling him what he needed to hear. He twitched.

"You can handle one! Let's see how you handle two!" He shouted, two more rose petals falling off his wand, creating two more circles, that unsurprisingly, created two more of these bronze Valkyrie.

"You could do any number of things, that I wouldn't be able to expect, but you choose to do something I've already seen?" I sighed, "You really are a one trick pony. Let's get this over with." At the same time, the runes on my left hand began to glow. Well, that's interesting. Let's see where this leads, shall we? I charge forward, faster than anything I've ever experienced before. As I ran, I threw the spear, much like a javelin, catching the Valkyrie on the right in the chest. It didn't fully puncture, but the thing was knocked off it's feet by the force, with me chasing it down, my butterfly knife being brought out of my pocket faster than he or it could respond. The knife bite into the area that would have been the neck of a normal human, removing its head from it's shoulders in a single strike.

"Fore!" I shouted, removing the spear from the first Valkyrie, twirling it my hand before swinging it like a bat, connecting with the head of the second's. The blow was far more powerful than what I expected, nearly bending my new weapon in half, but it turned the Valkyrie's head into a projectile, causing more than a few students to duck as the bronze head flew past their own.

"Sorry," I said, rubbing the back of my head, "I think everyone should get back for their own safety if nothing else." My eyes were drawn to a flash of light to my left, signalling the arrival of more bronze Valkyrie's. I jumped back, doing a backflip in the process (I could do backflips now! What were these runes doing?). I landed on my feet, staring down at Guiche and his three Valkyrie's.

"Now if you had only used something else, you might have been actually able to hit me," I sighed. This summoning gimmick had potential in spades, but he was doing nothing to support them. Did controlling them take up all his focus or whatever it was he did to control them? If that was the case, he should at least learn how use a spear.

"I already did hit you!" He snarled, but his gaze avoided the wound, which was simply getting progressively worse. Well, it's time to break that piece of ego.

"I kind of let it. I took a risk for that spear, and it worked. Besides, it was your Valkyrie did all the work, not you," I said, ignoring the beginnings of dull ache in my side. Adrenaline could only go so far. His mouth dropped slightly at my admission, as the runes began to glow brighter, alongside my butterfly knife. Wait, my butterfly knife was glowing? What the hell? I brought the now glowing weapon up to my face, only to watch in shock as it began to change shape. The blade became hooked, much like a sickle, with the handle becoming slimmer, part of it coming for the hilt of the blade to the bottom of the grip, with spikes poking through. The area that the crossguard should have been was a sphere, which quickly turned into an eye. I blinked.

' _An eye. Wait, does that mean?'_ I didn't get the chance to finish my thought, as shadow encased my body. It was like the dagger was giving me a new pair of cloths. Well, more like red, purple and black priest robes. But it felt nice. It still didn't stop the bleeding, not that it mattered anymore. I heard plenty of mutters. Things about noble, impossible, or simply incoherent chatter from shock. The hood I now wore obscured my vision and hearing slightly. The three Valkyrie charged forward as spell's started flying into my mind. Where the runes telling me how to use the weapon? My grin was hidden from sight as the Valkyrie came close. One spell. One spell was all it would take. Moments before impact, I shouted out the spell.

" **Dispersion!"**

P.O.V. Louise

I watched in horror as the fight began. My familiar was going to get herself killed.

"I figured you didn't have the balls to fight me yourself," Isabell taunted, taking some type of fighting stance. Why was she doing this? Her behavior was appalling for a commoner, let alone a girl! She had even drawn another one of her knifes! There was no way she, a commoner, would be able to take out one of Guiche's bronze Valkyrie! The two darted forward at about the same time, both trying to land the first strike. Even from where I stood, I couldn't tell who hit first. I did know that familiar got hit, leaving a bleeding gash in her right side, which had already begun to leak crimson blood. I felt my face pale, and I wasn't the only one. I almost ordered my familiar to give up then and there, even as she looked at the wound herself. But she turned back to face the Valkyrie causing me to panic.

' _Why isn't she in pain? Why hasn't she given up already? Can't she see she's outmatched?'_ I thought in panic. I was snapped out of my thoughts as my familiar threw her knife into the air, which caused everyone to look at the shining piece of metal, including Guiche and the Valkyrie.

"Never take your eyes off your enemy!" She suddenly shouted, dodging a blind thrust made by the construct, before grabbing it and lifting it off the ground. She threw it down onto the ground with as much force as she could, causing the Valkyrie to give off a snapping sound. To my shock (and I wasn't alone) it's spear was suddenly airborne, twirling like a dancer through the air. My familiar plucked her falling dagger out of the air, before running to grab the spear as it fell. With the knife returning to her pocket, she twirled the new weapon in her hand like a she had used one all her life.

' _Where did my familiar learn this?'_ I thought. I knew she was from another world, but how she was fighting was insane! Where all girls from her world this strong? How was a commoner this trained for battle? She was wounded, and yet she was still beating Guiche's Valkyrie with a startling degree of ease. It's almost like she got herself wounded on the expressed purpose of making the fight harder for herself!

"You can't do that!" Guiche shouted in panic. My familiar smirked, not even turning to face him.

"Of course I can. You gave it a weapon, I simply obtained it," Isabell said, clearly not caring about it.

' _A pretty fancy way of saying stealing,'_ I thought grimly. How did she even get the spear out of it's hands, anyway? I noticed a piece of blue metal laying on the ground. One that looked quite similar to the Valkyrie's fist. Did my familiar use her knife to cut off most of it's hand? That would take nothing short of steel, and good steel was unbelievably expensive! How did she get her hands on a steel knife?

' _Oh, right, she's from a different world,'_ I thought to myself. Why was that simply fact so hard to remember? Oh, right, because it was almost completely crazy! Almost as crazy as my familiar! Not even a man acted like she did! But based on her behavior, it wouldn't surprise me if gender norms were switched in her world. A loud crack broke me out of my thoughts, as I watched my familiar use the shaft of the spear to block an incoming punch, before launching her own counter attack, using the spear tip to appearing to cut out the Valkyrie's eyes. She charged forward, impaling the construct, before tearing the thing in half, kicking it's upper body while digging her spear into the lower. With a groan, the bronze golem came apart, both halves falling to the ground with a thump.

"Impossible!" Someone shouted on my right. Impossible didn't even began to describe what was happening. My familiar had managed to beat down a bronze Valkyrie, without any outside interference, or enchanted weapons. Unheard of would be a far better word.

"Done yet, Guiche?" My familiar taunted once again, "Or do you have anything else in that bag of magic tricks?" What's up with all these taunts? She was the one that was wounded, and the wound had only gotten larger. The blood had already begun to stain her strange pants, tainting it a faint red.

' _That wound is disgusting! Why isn't she feeling anything yet? Most would be doubled over in pain!_ I thought, turning my paling face away. Did my familiar have a high threshold to pain or something? At this point, I was pretty sure I couldn't be surprised anymore by my familiar. Maybe she was everything I did ask for, and I simply didn't know it.

"You can handle one! Let's see how you handle two!" Guiche shouted in panic, summoning two more bronze Valkyrie's in front of him.

"You could do any number of things, that I wouldn't be able to expect, but you choose to do something I've already seen?" My familiar sighed, almost sounding depressed, "You really are a one trick pony. Let's get this over with."

' _Wait, did she just say any number of things?'_ I thought, ' _How does she think magic works? Guiche is only a dot mage. Of course he isn't going to have anything overly powerful or multiple different spells. Wait, my familiar knew none of that,'_ I thought. What did she think magic was? Scratch that, I probably don't want to know the answer. Suddenly, my familiar shoot forward, but not before the spear in her right hand was instantly in the chest of the Valkyrie on the right. The force knocked it off it's feet, and in a flash, my familiar was hovering above it, knife suddenly in hand as she took off it's head.

"Fore!" She suddenly shouted, pulling the spear out of the first's chest and using it as some type of club, causing the weapon to bend out of shape, but not before the Valkyrie's head was turned into a projectile. It promptly flew over a few people's head's, landing somewhere out of sight.

"Sorry," my familiar said as she rubbed the back of her head in a sheepish manner, "I think everyone should get back for their own safety if nothing else." I bit back a sigh. She's worried about other people's safety in a duel? She should be worried about her own! My familiar was the one who was even hurt! And she's telling nobles that? Who does she think she is? A silent cast from Guiche brings in more Valkyrie, something she notices, flipping out of the way and to a much safer distance, leaving the ruined spear behind.

"Now if you had only used something else, you might have been actually able to hit me," Isabella said, sounding bored. Despite her wound, I could almost sense she had expected a much harder fight. This, combined with her earlier comment, seemed to sent Guiche into a rage.

"I already did hit you!" He practically barked. However, even I could see that he avoided looking at the wound in my familiar's side.

"I kind of let it. I took a risk for that spear, and it worked. Besides, it was your Valkyrie did all the work, not you," she said calmly. I blinked. She really didn't know a thing, did she. At that moment, however, her knife began to glow. She brought it to her face level, like this was something she had never seen before (she'd have to have seen it before. It was her weapon!). It's shape was changing, but from where I stood, I couldn't tell what. It was some type of sickle like weapon, but it remained at around the same size. The new weapon began admitting some type of shadowy energy, wrapping itself around my familiar, ultimately fading, leaving her with a new set of cloths. Robes, a mixture of red, black and purple, covered her from head to toe. Whispering started to go up, going to from noble to being simply another fancy trick. Something told me it wasn't a trick.

' _What is going on here?'_ I thought, racking my brain. My familiar said that there was no magic in her world. This is clearly magic. Could it be that she was unaware of any magic that existed there? Or maybe magic from this world? Who would have anything to gain, or could even change a person's weaponry and clothing without being noticed? I doubted a spell like that even existed. I was shook out of my thoughts as the three bronze Valkyrie charged forward. Just as they were about to land their attacks, my familiar shouted a single word.

" **Dispersion!"** Her body suddenly turned into a cloud of shadow, which the Valkyrie couldn't harm. The cloud shoot backwards, reforming into my familiar at a safe distance away.

' _Ok, little miss "I'm from a world that doesn't have magic". How did that just happen? That was pretty clearly magic, even if I didn't understand it.'_ I wasn't the only one with that thought process. Only minus the first part, because I was the only one that knew that piece of information. Which made the situation even more irrecoperencable. Says magic doesn't exist. Casts an unknown form of magic. Isn't a noble. Casts a spell. Despite her new hood, I could still see the edge's of my familiar mouth twist in, wait, was that disgust?

"That's what I was afraid of," I heard her mumble. Afraid of? Afraid of what? The dagger? What was so scary about about that weapon? So far the only thing she had done with it was turn herself into a dark cloud.

"For those of you who are unaware," she said raising her voice, "this weapon is know as Xal'alath, Blade of the Black Empire. It was forged from a claw of a race of beings made of pure horror, darkness, and chaos. Beings so powerful it takes armies to bring down one's physical body, and it will remain fully conscious afterwards, and that is with them imprisoned. Beings of such power they warp the worlds they inhabit, binding themselves to a planet, to make their true death that world's as well. And I'll spare you details of what this weapon was used for throughout it's history, considering that you can barely stomach seeing a bleeding cut on my side. Guiche, if this fight continues, I cannot guarantee that you'll be alive at the end of it."

I quickly began digesting the information was given, without succumbing to the urge to run away and scream in panic. A few actually did. Considering her tone was so deadly serious, even I felt she wasn't lying. Even if half of that was true, I would be truly disgusted. While I doubted exactly what it was made of (there couldn't be anything stronger than the founder). But if these things where as powerful as she said, how exactly did they become imprisoned? What were these creatures even called? And once again, this called into doubt about her really being from a place without magic. But something that could end a world just because of their deaths? That was horrifying. While I doubted it highly, the fact that my familiar thought something like that existed was truly worrying. The last part was very interesting. What did she mean by "if this fight continues"? What did the weapon do? Drive it's wielder out of control in the heat of battle?

"You think I'm scared of some commoner with smoke and mirrors! This is nothing than a trick!" Guiche shouted, trying to reinforce his own bravado.

"It's a shame you think that," my familiar said flatly, "In that case, a demonstration is in order. **Mind Sear.** " A purple beam came from the raised dagger tip, connecting to the center bronze Valkyrie. At first, nothing seemed to happen, until it's metal head started to crumple up, it's body unleashing waves of shadow energy, cascading against the other two. The attack was brutal, but brief, the Valkyrie's only standing for a few seconds under the assault. The remains of the Valkyrie slowly began to dissolve in front of Guiche's eyes, as the leftover shadow's retreated to my familiar, beginning to form a shroud around my familiar. Guchie, in even more panic, summoned four more of his bronze Valkyrie.

" **Mind Bomb. Mind Spike. Mind Sear,** " my familiar sad, casting even more of her strange spells. The first, the one I assumed was a Mind Bomb, an orb of shadow that she threw at the Valkyrie, causing a small explosion, the shadow seeping into their bodies, making them unable to move. The second spell, which would have had of been Mind Spike, was a simple blue beam that came from my familiar's left hand, punching a hole through the head of the far right Valkyrie. The spell was followed by another Mind Sear, shadowy energy taking apart the remaining three before they could even began to move.

' _Such power! How is she doing that?'_ I thought. It was magic. I don't know how, I don't know why, but my familiar was using magic. I was more than a bit jealous. I summoned someone from another world, one without magic (supposedly), and yet she was already a far better at it than I was. At the fact that this magic simply didn't make sense! It certainly wasn't elemental. No wind. No fire. No water. No earth. Just hazy shadows and repetition of the word mind. The shadow's had almost encased my familiar was well. It was far different for the first time, when she turned herself into a cloud. It seemed to cling to her body, almost like a second skin made of darkness. This was a different spell. Was it even a spell in the first place? It had to be, right?

"What is this?!" Guiche shouted in panic. He wasn't the only one. Muttering, whispering, and even outright running had become common. The crowd around me had been cut in half during the conflict, especially with my familiar started slinging around unknown magic.

"Shadow. Darkness. Fear," my familiar rumbled, "I told you Guiche, that if this fight continued, that your life was something I could not guarantee. Surrender now while you still have the chance." Something was off. The words she spoke didn't sound like the words I heard. Did somebody mess with the translation spell Colbert placed on her? No it wasn't that. It was more like she was speaking a whole new language. One that translated itself after it was heard within somebody's head. Something like that didn't exist, right?

"I will not surrender to a commoner that let's someone else to their fighting for them!" He shouted in desperation, an attempt to try and bolster his rapidly failing bravado.

"Shame. **Shadow Word: Pain,** " my familiar whispered, a black mark suddenly appearing on Guiche's hand, causing him to double over in pain. The last pieces of the shroud hugged her form. Suddenly she started laughing. Her voice wasn't like what normally was. It was dark, shadowy, and frightening. It sound almost like she had gone mad. Maybe the weapon actually did drive it's user mad.

"Foolish mortal. Your soul will go to feed the masters," my familiar was once again speaking in a language we couldn't understand, but this time, the words meaning rang within my head. Skip going insane, my familiar had become possessed! It wasn't just her I was worried about, this crazy and possessed version of my familiar had turned her eyes on Guiche, very much intent on finishing the fight.

" **Void Bolt.** " The being controlling my familiar snarled, letting out a orb of dark energy that slammed into Guiche's stomach, causing him to double over in pain.

"I surrender," he gasped. My familiar didn't appear to notice his admission of defeat, slowly advancing on him.

"Familiar! I order you to stop!" I tried to force my will over the force controlling her. Nothing. I wasn't going to let my Familiar kill somebody! I raised my wand, pointing it at my familiar.

" **Fireball!** " I shout. Once again, nothing seemed to come from it, not even an explosion. Suddenly, the shadow surrounding my familiar's arm cracked open, before a tremendous explosion went off. The shockwave knocked me off my feet, as the my familiar stumbled from the attack.

" **Shadowmend.** " It rasped, as the cloak of shadow dispersed itself from around my familiar, except for around her arm. She had returned to normal. Mostly. Her breathing was heavy, and by the founder, the right side of her body was covered in blood. Even the grass was stained with the crimson liquid.

"Thank you, master. I desperately needed that." even her voice was raspy, clearly in pain. "As for you, my master has saved your life. I will ask one last time. Do. You. Yield?" Did she not remember? Guiche had surrendered barely a few seconds ago.

"Yes! Yes! Just don't kill me!" He begged, rather unfitting for a noble. However, even I couldn't blame the skirt-chaser for his fear.

"Good. Just to think that this could have all been avoided if you owned up to your mistakes and didn't try to slap somebody. This is all on you," my familiar voice was weak, but still heard. She then proceeded to fall forward, unconscious.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Infirmary*

P.O.V. Isabella

I let out a groan of pain as I opened my eyes. Everything, and I mean everything hurt. But by far the worst was my right arm and my head. How did I get here again?

' _Oh, right, the idiot,'_ I thought to myself. The duel quickly rushed back. Me kicking Guiche's ass, getting Xal'alath, kicking even more ass, going crazy (which I didn't remember anything about), the sudden pain in my arm that signaled the end of my madness, Guiche's surrender, and lastly, me passing out. What happened to my arm anyway? I'm pretty sure Louise did something to it. I took a look down.

' _That is not good,'_ I thought grimly. I highly doubted Louise did this. It felt like my arm had been mostly blown off. But my limb was still in one piece, but was in very poor shape. Maybe it was a spell I casted as a last ditch effort to keep my limb intact? I racked my brain

' _Shadow Priests are going to lose most of their healing spells in Legion, leaving_ _ **Holy Word: Shield**_ _,_ _ **Vampiric Touch**_ _,_ _**Vampiric Embrace**_ _, and gaining_ _ **Shadowmend**_ _. One spell prevents damage from being taken, and the other two heal by dealing damage. That leaves_ _ **Shadowmend**_ _,'_ I huff. **Shadowmend** was a spell that could heal for a lot. And I mean a lot. But it came at a cost. A very large cost. It took half of what it healed. Which, in theory, would explain why not only my arm was still here, but also why it looked almost dead.

"Familiar!" Louise shouted, I moved my right arm under the covers as quickly as possible. This was something she didn't need to see.

"Awake!" I responded, my voice very, very dry. Louise stormed into the room. She was not happy.

"You have a lot of explaining to do!" Louise shouted, not caring to the amount attention that she was attracting.

"About?" I ask. I had a bad feeling about this.

"All of it! The dagger! The magic!" She shouted, near the point of enragement.

"Then you might want to sit down, this is going to take awhile," I said bluntly. She let out a huff, before sitting down on the bed next to me on the left. "What do you already know?" I really needed to know that so I could tell were I was going to start.

"What you said about the dagger, exaggerated without a doubt," she snapped, arms crossed.

"I'm just going to get this out of the way. That weapon. It isn't from my world," I said, causing Louise to raise an eyebrow skeptically. "It exists in a game, in my world. A work of fiction. Like a book, if you will." I was going to need to make as many comparisons as possible to get this across. Louise nodded, understanding that much, even if she didn't understand what that entailed.

"Second, what I said in no way, shape, or form about that dagger is overexaggerated. I didn't say what the race is called aloud, simply because I don't know how the religion here works, but I trust you. These beings are know as the Old Gods. They are nothing but pure power and madness," Louise twitched as I mention the word Gods. This is why I didn't say their name outside.

"The only one true God is Brimir!" She shouted, borderline enraged.

"Cool it!" I snap back, "I'm just telling you exactly what they are called! Nobody sane would pay service to them anyway, and for good reason."

"And what reason is that?" She snapped, clearly annoyed.

"You just say way. The magic I used against Guiche. That is their power. Insanity. Darkness. Nothingness. And I am never using it again. Ever." I snarled, my voice very low. I don't know how I did it. I don't know why. But I'm not touching that thing again. Even if I had a ten foot pull. Louise's mouth dropped. "It takes that little power to make a normal person lose their mind, even temporarily. Do you want to meet the actual deal?" Louise shook her head.

"But how did you get it?" She questioned. That was an excellent question, actually. How exactly did I get my hands on Xal'alath?

"I have no idea," I said bluntly. I really didn't. Unless. I grin. It's time to an experiment. My throwing knifes where on the table.

"Do you think you hand me my knifes for a second?" I ask, slight grin creeping onto my face.

"Sure," Louise said, confusion evident in her voice. If I could do whatever happened with Xal'alath, maybe I could bring forth something different. I take ahold of the two weapons carefully, accidently revealing my currently damaged right arm, causing Louise to gasp.

"What happened?" She asked, voice filled of worry after a few minutes ago it was nothing but rage.

"I think whatever trick you did to bring me out of my insanity took off most of my arm, and I used the little healing capacity my specialization had to mend the wound. Sadly, that spell takes half of what it was used to heal. Hence, why my arm is so messed up," I said, almost like it was no big deal. It really wasn't. I'm pretty sure it was most of the reason I was placed here in the first place. I wasn't going to be that good of a protector if I was down to one arm. She frowned slightly.

"And you aren't mad?" She questioned like I was insane. Then again, to her, I likely was.

"Nope, not really," I said, grinning, "I would much rather be down most of a limb than murder somebody without just cause. Taking out a skirt chaser certainly wouldn't be worth the prison time, even if it was a justifiable one." I held the weapon's in my hand as the runes began to glow once again, slowly changing the two knives into a pair of fangs. Not just any fangs. The Fangs of the First Nightsaber, the artifact of Feral Druids, who took on the form of large panther's and other large felines. In this form they hunted from the shadow's, inflicting heavy damage with their claws and teeth, usually leaving crippling bleeding in their wake. I was panting and sweating from the effort, but it seemed to confirm my thoughts.

' _I'm able to turn the weapons I touch into the very same weapons the Heroes of Azeroth use against the Burning Legion!'_ The ruins began to glow even brighter as the knowledge of how to use the weapon was burned into my head. But what part of it was the ruin's doing? The weapon? The knowledge? Or was it both? The ruin's where something from here. The weapon's, from Azeroth. That would bring forth so many implications! So far, I know of two different worlds, this one, and my own. But if the ruins where from here, how would they create something out of a game in my world? Maybe it wasn't a game, and was an even more separate reality. Then how did this one know of it? Or did it know about Azeroth through my world?

' _And there goes my headache,'_ I rub my left hand on my temple as my weapon's return to normal. I was to far out of it to be thinking about interdimensional-reality bullshit, which caused my brain to freeze up, even under the best of circumstances.

"Two out of the thirty-six," I mutter to myself. I have created two, out of the total thirty-six different artifact weapons. Ideally, I would be able to use each and every one. Suddenly, Xal'alath flashed in my mind. Maybe that wasn't a good thing. Some artifact's certainly wouldn't be worth using. Xal'alath and the Blades of the Fallen Prince would be at the top of that list.

"You seem tired enough, but I have one last question before I go," Louise said, pushing herself up, "Why do you act?" Yep, I knew exactly where that was going.

"So much like a guy?" I finished for her. Louise's mouth dropped, whether from surprise I knew exactly what her question was, or from slight shock for interrupting her. "I'm going to guess you have stories here about on the prince always saves the princess, right?" Louise gave a nod.

"I grew with stories like that too," I grinned, "and do want to know what? I didn't want to be the piece of glass, locked up in the tower, awaiting rescue. No. I wanted to be the prince! That mindset really wasn't helped when I asked for a story like that, and my parent's showed me an anime called Revolutionary Girl Utena." I loved that show to bits.

"What's an anime?" Louise asked, cocking her head to the side in confusion. I am so going to have to get a translation spell on my laptop.

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And that's a wrap. Hopefully you all enjoyed the Guiche fight scene! Seista's first named appearance will take place next chapter.

One last thing before I go. I do not own World of Warcraft, Familiar of Zero, or any other character's besides Isabella (and her guildmates). Everything else belongs to it's rightful owners.


	4. Training

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

x-x- is P.O.V. change

It's review answering time! And we have quite a few this time!

truefortion: Thanks!

Boyzilla: Don't worry, the explanation isn't going to be simply magic (but at the moment it is). That is going to be funny. Almost as funny when she realises that some pink haired characters in anime are psycho, Yuki and Lucy being the key examples. The Ashbringer will have multiple appearances (I couldn't just leave out one of the most important and popular weapons out of this story), but it's first one is much further down the line.

HydraCG: Thanks! If you're referring the Illidian's weapons, the answer is no. However, she will be gain the Twinblades of the Deceiver and Aldarchi Warblades later down the line. And yes, when using such weapons, she would gain Demon Hunter powers.

Potatoman: Artifact's will give Isabella the abilities/spells of a specialization of the corresponding artifact. She also gets armor based on that spec. However, she cannot use two different artifacts at the same time (for good reason). Weapons like Doomhammer or other dual-wielded weapons are used as normal, but count as the same weapon. Same goes for weapon's with shields, such as Truthguard or the First of Ra-den. Hypothetically, if she did, it would likely cause her body to short circuit. These are immensely powerful weapons, and some of which have a degree of free will, such as Xal'alath.

PEJP: I can't spoil anything, but there is a good reason for why Isabella is able to transform her weapon into Azeroth's artifact weapons. Guiche strikes me as the person that tries to keep his ego intact by any means necessary. Until he faces physical harm. If I misspell one word or use one incorrectly, and I don't have a beta reader, I find that kind of ok, but thanks for pointing that out. Maybe. Lastly, I still can't spoil what I have planned, but why Isabella is able to do what she does will be explained.

GrimKid98: Anime is love. Anime is life.

Subzero the Hunter: The Ashbringer will be making an appearance. I cannot spoil when, but I expect people who know their Warcraft lore know exactly why she uses it when she does.

That makes two calls for the Ashbringer. Then again, it is pretty much one of the largest lore weapons ever, so I'm not really surprised. But you're going to have to wait for it. The Guiche fight would have been its first appearance if I had stuck with the original plan. Which was into itself a pain to write, due to the fact I had thirty-six different ways to end it. Other rejected weapon's include the Talon Spear, The Blades of the Fallen Prince, Fangs of the First Nightsaber, Felo'melorn, Doomhammer, and Titanstrike.

Also, seven reviews last chapter. Seven! I love you all for commenting!

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P.O.V. Isabella

After that I was consigned to three days of bed rest while water mages would heal the self inflicted damage to my arm. During the times where I wasn't getting healed, I was either talking to Louise out Azeroth magic (which seemed to do nothing but give the girl a headache), and got to know the maid I had saved, Siesta. The girl was every nice, with black hair and eyes (two very common and dominant genes, which caused me some internal confusion, seeing as she was the first person I meet with one or the other).

' _How do genetics work here? I mean, so far I've seen people with natural green, blue, and pink hair. What's next, purple?'_ Either way, back to Siesta. She outright spend most of the first day apologising to me. About getting me involved. It took for more than it should have before I got a word to tell her that I did it on my own free will, no I wasn't sorry, and if anyone should be apologising, it should be Guiche apologising to her. That idea seemed to short out her brain for a short period, which brought on another bought of apologies. It didn't stop until I tapped her on the head and told her everything was fine. The next day was much better. We talked about younger siblings, she being the oldest of eight, and me being the oldest of two (she had seven younger siblings, which was insane). She was from a small farming town called Tarbes (sounded like a nice place, would have to visit at some point). The girl was still timid, and I did have to remind her to stop apologising.

When I wasn't talking with either Louise or Siesta, I was experimenting with my newfound abilities. Besides Xal'alath (which I never intended to use again) and the Fangs of the First Nightsaber , I now added Kingsbane, the dagger's used by Garona Halforcen under the control of Gul'dan, and the Fangs of the Devourer, a pair of daggers forged from the fang's of the personal hound of Sargeras, who was the lord of the Burning Legion. Which put three fourths of the weapons I could create, modify, plucking for elsewhere in reality, or whatever it was I was doing. The runes had something to do with it, because they glowed whenever I did what I did. Strangely, my butterfly knife had gone missing, something that pissed me off to no end. That was my eighteenth birthday present from my aunt! Whoever took it was going to pay! Why did they take it, anyway? If they were trying to recreate or copy whatever it was I did to turn the weapon in Xal'alath, they had better hope I found them first. For one thing, I didn't even know if it is possible (like all other artifact weapons, it is one of a kind, lore wise). Second, if they were successful in this, (which they could be), the odds of them actually controlling the weapon, let being able to use it's full power without going flat out insane (not the temporary insanity I induced on myself) were slim to none.

But none of that was important to the predicament I had managed to get myself into. I had been using the Fangs of the First Nightsaber alone, using minor healing spells to help speed along my recovery (I was stir crazy, and I wasn't spending another day in bed). However, I didn't exactly watch myself, exhausting the specs tiny mana reserve, and due to my tiredness (this was late at night), I fainted. With the weapons still active (unlike with Xal'alath, which according to Louise, had returned to normal after I had passed out after my fight with Guiche). Now, with the universe officially having a sense of humor, I had found myself within the Emerald Dream.

' _Well. Shit,'_ I thought, sitting down, legs crossed. I don't know which I was more impressed by, the fact that I was certainly within the Emerald Dream itself, or the fact this world had an Emerald Dream. At least, I'm pretty sure it's this places Emerald Dream (how is that possible? That would imply the Titan's are actually real!), Azeroth's was all corrupted and red. Well, it was called the Emerald Nightmare at that point. But how was I going to get out? I was wracking my brains on what I knew about the Dream.

' _It's a world's blueprint, what it looked like before sentient races populated a world's surface. It had layers, each one deeper than the other, allowing one to more forward or backward in time, in a sense. Or just let you sit just at the level of waking world. But how did Druids exit the dream?'_ I hiss. How was this key piece of information escaping me? Druidic lore was never one of my stronger points, but it was still lore. I knew most, if not all of it. And getting out of the Emerald Dream was one of the places that I seemed to be lacking. Oh well. It's not like sitting around doing nothing was going to fix the problem.

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*Deep within the Emerald Dream, layer unknown*

P.O.V. Isabella

' _Well, if I wasn't lost before, I certainly am now. But it's not like there is anybody here to give me directions,'_ I growl internally. It was find of my own fault for being overly curious about my newfound abilities, and the phrase of 'curiosity killed the cat' was definitely true. But then again, curiosity may have killed the cat, but satisfaction had brought it back. Still, I was getting tired of just simply walking in a straight line (at least I thought I was walking in a straight line). It was hard to tell with all the green mist everywhere. Not only that, sense I was no longer on a physical plane of existence, barriers, including walls, or in some causes, even the floor, couldn't stop me. Which is why I suddenly feel through the floor, landing in the middle of a massive chamber. A chamber that was in the middle of a pitched battle between what looked like two humans and, wait, is that an?

"Eck!" I shout to myself, ducking under a beam of shadow energy that had came from the creature. Could I be hurt when I was like this? Could I be heard like this? Either way, I wasn't going to find out. Time to get behind cover. I duck behind a small pile of rubble, and just in time. Whatever spell the guy in the back was working on was finished, unleashing a mighty explosion of pure force. The Old God (it looked like one, somewhat), was wiped out of existence. With. A. Single. Spell.

' _Holy shit! Who is this guy?'_ I thought. Could I somehow be viewing to some past event of a powerful mage? Hell, what type of mage would have that type of power? What was that person Louise mentioned again? Brimir? Yeah, that's the guy. Could I be watching a dream or leftover of Brimir? Oh, boy, if Louise hears about this, she will flip her shit. So it was a case of someone with a lot of power being considered a God, not a divine being into itself.

"Sasha, how are those modifications I made to your runes holding up?" The man asked, looking at the girl (who was clearly an archetype elf, as I had just realized), who was carrying a long blade in one hand.

' _Wait, runes?'_ What? How? I needed to see! Ok, so Brimir, a mage so powerful people view him as a God, had a humanoid familiar. Louise summons a human familiar. Ok, I may not know much about magic, but I do know that history tends to repeat itself, alongside constants and variables (thank you Elizabeth from  Bioshock:Infinite). In this case, a humanoid familiar was the constant. But what did that mean for the mage? Power? Very unique (and destructive) magic? I move out of my hiding spot. Hopefully, neither of them would notice me from within the Dream. Where would her rune even by? I would assume it would be on her left hand (constants), but it could be elsewhere (variable). Or the fact he said runes, which might imply plural. Screw it, I'm going to look. What harm could it do? So I did, moving forward, taking a look at my left hand, before looking at her's. It was a near perfect match, too. The only difference was at the very end.

' _Wait, is that an X? As in the latin numeral for ten?'_ I look down at my own hand. My runic marking ended three x's, a v, and a I. All in latin like format. X is ten. V is five. I is one. That made thirty-six. Azeroth had thirty-six artifact weapons. But why did Brimir's familiar only have ten? Could she even summon any, or call forth any, or whatever it was that I could do? If so, why the pointless restraint? If there was a reason, why wasn't there one on me? I swear, the story of my life is whenever I answer half an answer, a dozen more questions are raised.

"Is there something wrong, Sasha?" The male asked, concerned about the female's lack of response.

"No, Brimir, I'm fine," the elf said, "there's just a strange spirit around." I blink.

' _One, there is that suspicion confirmed. Two, oh shit, she can see me,'_ I thought in panic. This wasn't going to end well. The elf looked at me, before waving her hand. Suddenly, my body began to fade.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Infirmary*

P.O.V. Isabella

I blink as I woke up. I was expecting, I don't know, something a little bit more deadly or harmful. Well, better but the knives away before any finds that I've been messing with them. A brief flash of light comes from my runes as my weapons return to normal. Next time, don't nod off while holding onto powerful artifacts. Oh well. If you don't make mistakes, you can't learn. Even though I prefer to learn from the mistakes of others.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Louise

I awake up as the sun shines on my face. I let out a yawn as I stretch. I looked around tiredly for my familiar.

' _Oh right, Isabella is currently in the infirmary,'_ my mind lazily put together as I got dressed. We had shared a room for all of one day, but in that one day I had became used to her presence. Things had certainly changed after her duel with Guchie (can it even be called a duel?). Most people started keeping a distance, and the usage of my nickname, Louise the Zero, almost stopped dead. Guchie seemed to enter a near state of panic in my presence, worried that my familiar was going to jump out of nowhere and attack him. The fact that I was being left alone was comforting for a while, until I started hearing the rumors. It was certainly strange. Ranging from my familiar was simply a master of trickery, to being the living form of death, to even being a noble from a far off land. I think at the least she would be amused by such rumors.

Not only that, between classes, I had told her to explain how the magic from her 'game' worked. That was a mistake. As it was, on this 'Azeroth', magic was broad term that included multiple different groups of magic users. Shaman's, as they were known as on that world, was what she considered to be the closest fit to magic here. As if. They were pretty much square class mages, the ability to use all four elements at once. However, only the strongest could fuse elements together. Their magic wasn't normal, either. Most Shaman's would ask for the elements help in battle, almost as if they were alive (yeah, right, that's even more ridiculous than coming from another world). Next was Light, and the Shadow. Two sides of the same coin, as she described it. The Shadow was only used by Shadow Priests (hence the name) and occasionally Discipline Priests. Otherwise, Priests used the Light to as another form of healing magic. But the two other styles went about it very differently. While Holy (also the name of the Paladin healing style), simply mended wounds, Discipline placed buffs on their allies, before damaging enemies to heal them. Paladins (priests that used the heavy armor of warriors), also used the Light, wielding it for defense, healing, and offense, and preferred close quarters. Protection used it to augment their defenses, and Retribution used it to increase their power.

' _How did it work again? Each profession of combat had two to four ways of going about it?"_ I thought was I headed toward the dining hall. From what she described, each combat style was set, but still had some degree of flexibility. Most had three, while the Illidari had two (she still didn't tell me what Illidari actually meant), and Druids had four. Druidism made the even less sense the Shaman's elemental magic, calling on the power of nature (how does that even work?). This usually involved some form of shapeshifting. Feral Druids used this to take on the form of large stealth predators, usually large cats. Guardian Druids used the form of a bear to protect their allies. Restoration used their magic to heal wounds, typically over a period of time, and took the form of a tree. Then there was Balance, which used the power of the sun and moon. Other forms included birds, deer, and something called a sea lion. Another was runic. It wasn't something she went into great detail about, but basics involved magical runes that were fixated to armor, weapons, and sometimes the wielder itself. The runes could be used to cast spell like abilities, which temporarily used up the runes power. But using a rune caused a burst of energy, which the user could use for other spells, and these spells could help regenerate ruins. But beyond that, she didn't go that deep into what actually used runes.

Which left the last two, Arcane magic, the magic of Azeroth's mages, and Fel magic, used by warlock's. Mage's use three different magics. Frost used ice and water for it's spell (ice as an stand alone element? Everyone knows that ice magic was a mixture of wind and water). Next was Fire, which used fire (naturally, whoever thought up of these names wasn't very creative), to burn, scorch, and incinerate their enemies. Last was Arcane, which used pure magical force to blast targets to smithereens. It was also, strangely enough, actually some form of purified Fel magic (how that actually worked was something she also didn't bother to explain, which either meant she didn't exactly know how, or she was lying). Fel magic could be used for also a few things. Mostly interdimensional portals and such, but if what she said about any warlock in combat was even half true, then they were truly fearsome. Destruction used Fel-fire, much like a Fire mage, but was far more savage, spells generating energy for some type of spell she called **Chaos Bolt**. Demonology focused on calling forth creatures that called a place called the Twisted Neither their home, and controlling them. And it sounded like there were a lot of creatures, including one she had claimed could eat magic (horrifying if true). The last was Affliction, which leveled curses against their enemies, bringing them down slowly over time.

' _This makes my brain hurt. How is any of this possible? Something tells me even she doesn't know the answer to that,'_ I groan internally. It was clear while she understood what she was doing, she didn't understand how, or why. That itself was frustrating. It's like poof, when she became my familiar, she could suddenly do whatever it was she was doing. It didn't make any sense!

"I don't know how, but somehow your arm has finished healing," I heard a voice speak from around the corner. After my familiar's arm was nearly blown off (or was mostly, nobody actually knew which), one of teachers was put in charge of fixing her arm (she was one I never heard of before, either, likely one of the more advanced teachers). Exactly what she did was a mystery, but had to do something about how she recreated her arm from scratch. However, it lacked muscles, which why it was going take three days to return her arm to it's pre-recreated state. However, now it appeared to only taken two (somehow).

"Then am I free to go?" My familiar asked. As to be expected, she was more than ready to at least get out of bed and move around. If there was one thing I had learned about my strange familiar, it was that she couldn't handle boredom all that well. If you gave her something to do, she would sit for hours, but if not, she wanted to be doing something. If this didn't show how childish my familiar could be, then I didn't know what could. Her behavior wasn't going to be fun to explain to my mother, that was certain.

' _Should I even show her to my family?'_ I thought. The girl was stubborn, temperamental, and judgemental, and only seemed to listen to those who had earned her respect. How did I even do that, anyway? Maybe it was the runes at work? Somehow, I doubted it. She seemed far to free willed, far too, well, strange, for it to have any effect at this point. Or ever. Something told me that forcing the issue wasn't going to help.

"I don't see any reason to keep you here. So I guess," she said, "but you are going to have to take it easy."

"What I need to do is rebuild the muscle I lost in my arm," Isabella quipped back, "magic is only going to do so much." The teachers mouth dropped. Most people after her duel with Guchie stopped trying to get her to conform to the standard of commoners and nobles (myself included, it simply wasn't worth it, and it was clear she could handle herself).

"It's a joke, relax! I'll take it easy-ish for a week or so. You're the doctor, you know best when it comes to thing," I blink. What? I was never going to be able to understand my familiar. She was just so chaotic. My familiar went from being deadly serious to joking in about the same amount of time it took her to blink. I hadn't fully rounded the corner as she bumped into me.

"Sorry master," my familiar smiled, "it looks like I've been discharged ahead of schedule." I blinked. Discharged? What was that supposed to mean?

"It means I can leave," she said, almost like she was reading my mind.

"How are you doing that?" I question. It was beginning to bother me. Exactly how was she able to do that?

"What?" My familiar blinked innocently. Did she really not notice?

"How you are able tell exactly what I'm thinking!" I nearly shouted.

"I'm not," she said, causing me to blink. What? "After I say something, sometimes you look at me funny. Which means I've said something in my worlds terms that don't exactly crossover well, so I need to define it so you understand it." That was, actually, fairly sound logic.

"So, what's happening today?" She asked.

"For me, I'm going to have to go to class. For you, I have no idea," I said. I really didn't have anything to do for her. Most familiar's would just sit around and wait, but not only was she human, having her sit around was something that wasn't going to go over well. A grin suddenly lit up on her face.

"Can I come?" She asked eagerly, barely keeping her excitement from boiling over. I was going to regret this.

"I guess?" I nearly question. Why was this suddenly an interest for her?

"Great! Thanks! I'm going to see if I left any school supplies in my backpack!" My familiar shouted as she ran off.

' _Why do I feel like I'm going to regret this?'_

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, classroom*

P.O.V. Isabella

So mages weren't as powerful as I had been led to believe. Good to know. They were separated by how many elements they could use. One was dot, two was line, three was triangle, and four was square. However, if there was only four different types of magic, why the hell was there a pentagram wherever I looked? A pentagram had five points, which implied five different elements. What was this fifth element, and why was nobody teaching it? The gears in my brain were going a mile a minute, trying to figure it out. I was jotting down whatever notes I could over the matter. It. Didn't. Make. Sense! Why would there be five elements, only have four be taught, and why would it not chain with the others? Note to self, start doing some research!

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, courtyard*

P.O.V. Isabella

"You want to me to do what again?!" Louise shooted. I put my original plan of figuring out whatever this fifth magic was when I figured out that I couldn't exactly read this place's script (Louise promised to help me with this later). Which lead to a short discussion of Louise's own magic. Which many thought was none (bull). That left two different possibilities. The first is that her magic was this fifth element. That was very likely. The second was that she was so powerful, she couldn't cast basic spells. That was less likely, but I doubted it was impossible. Either way, the only thing she had was explosions. And explosions were good. Even if she didn't know that.

"I want you to try and hit me with your magic," I said. The courtyard was empty, which is why I choose it. It was less than ideal, but I didn't know the lay of the land, and my sense of direction was terrible. I did not run the off chance risk of getting lost looking for a better training ground.

"Every spell I casts ends in an explosion!" Louise snapped. This was the problem. These 'failures' at magic had worn away at her, and her peers didn't want her to forget it.

"That's the point. Everything ends in an explosion," I say, causing her to blink. "We are going to build on that. I don't care that you or your peers seem to think it's nothing, explosions are powerful and dangerous. They don't symbolize having too little power, it's a sign of too much. Now, hit me with your best shot." I definitely was going to need to stay on my feet, my throwing knives changing into the Fangs of the Devourer.

" **Fireball!** " Louise shouted, letting the spell fly. By that point I was already out of the way, allowing me to observe exactly what was happening within. I had to resist the urge to blink. How it worked! It was nothing more than a blast of light, followed by a shockwave of pressure and smokeless fire! It was, surprisingly, almost like a much smaller, less destructive version of Brimir. This is very interesting. And something told me Louise wasn't going to like it.

P.O.V. Louise

" **Fireball!** " I shouted, wand pointed forward. My familiar wanted me to shot explosion's at her! But what she said had got me thinking. Explosion's not being a sign of me having no magical talent, but it being a sign of me having to much. How did she come to that conclusion, anyway? I casted another spell, watching my familiar dodge and weave away from every spell I threw at her.

' _I know I shouldn't be asking this, but how is she doing that?'_ I thought. The moment I pointed my wand anywhere close to her, she was on the move. Three explosion, three misses. How was I supposed to hit her? Did I need bigger explosions?

' _Wait, bigger explosions,'_ I thought. Could I even do that? Well, I guess I could try. I began to focus, building up power for another spell. The resulting explosion was more than twice the size of my normal mishaps, and while it did miss it's target (again), the shockwave sent my familiar into a roll. Somehow, me actually focusing on casting an explosion, rather than other spells, I was aware of the willpower I was consuming. While it wasn't much individually, three normal explosions and much larger was something I could actually feel. Where my familiar was finishing her roll, I aimed my wand and cast another explosion, causing her to jump straight up. I point my wand upwards, aiming for around my familiar, causing the air to her right to explode. Which caused her fall to the ground in a laughing fit.

"That was amassing!" My familiar shouted, pulling herself back onto her feet, her new leather armor covered in a layer of soot, and I was definitely breathing heavily. A flash of light later and my familiar was back in her old clothing. It did nothing to solve the soot problem though (how did that work anyway? Besides the normal answer of 'I don't know.").

"I haven't had a shower in three days," she groaned.

"Shower?" I question. What was that?

"It's like a bath," she said, wiping some of the soot of herself.

"We have bathes on the grounds," I said, causing my familiar to blink.

"There are bathes here!" She shouted, looking around in panic. I felt a bead of sweat drip off my brow. Had I really worked up a sweat?

"I think we could both use one," I said.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's room*

P.O.V. Isabella

I let out a content sigh, my short hair still wet. I needed that bath. Badly. I was going to have to make use of it often. It was quite relaxing. What day was it again? Thursday? I blink. Holy crap, I haven't shown up for raid this week! Well, odds were that heroic Hellfire Citadel was already cleared by tonight, so everyone would be running mythic dungeons for more valor. I quickly began getting set up. No way I was missing out of getting some easy valor points while hanging out with my guildmates.

"What are you doing?" Louise asked, getting ready for bed.

"Getting ready for raid," I said, taking a look at the clock. It was a good hour before "raid" would start. Maybe I could get some fresh air in the meantime?

"I'm going out for a quick walk," I said. Louise nodded. I opened the door, stepping into the hall, before closing it slowly behind me. It wasn't that far to the ground level, where I could get some fresh air. I quickly found the stairs, descending down the spiral staircase. However, after I had passed about three doorways, I tripped over something. I turned by fall into a roll, causing me to skid slightly across the stone hallway. I turn around, bringing myself back up to my full height to see exactly what I tripped over (or more accurately, what tripped me).

"Well, you certainly, are, well, interesting," I mutter to nobody in particular. What I was seeing, was in lack of better words, was a four legged Charmander. Or something close enough to that.

' _Wait, isn't that'_ I didn't get any further as I was tackled by the thing. Ok. Now I was pissed. I'm pretty sure this is Kirche's pet. So why was it attacking me? The thing grabbed me by my shirt. The part that was just above my chest. Now I'm seething.

"Let go of me you deformed Charmander!" I shouted as it started dragging me someplace. I didn't want to kill it, especially if it was completely under Kirchie's control. It didn't know better (and neither did she, clearly). I'm just going to headbut the thing until it learns. I pull back my head, before slamming it into the creature's head.

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*Hallway, outside of Kirchie's Room*

P.O.V. Isabella

I had finally headbutted the thing into the realms of the unconscious. I should give the poor thing some credit. It was certainly dedicated, annoyingly so. It was also heavy. Either way, I was going to end this, little, well, whatever it was. Then I kicked down the door. Whatever I had been expecting, certainly wasn't what I got. I mean, how could I expect here in a nightgown (which barely covered her massive breasts, which might have been the point). It was a royal purple, and I had no idea what it was made out of (maybe silk). Getting me hot and bothered was certainly no easy task, I could give her that much. However, my temper always trumped my hormones. Even if it left me shocked for a few seconds. As she opened her mouth, I threw the limp body of her lizard are her, before just outright leaving.

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*Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Isabella

I let out a groan as I finally get back to Louise room. Hot and bothered. Check. Pissed as hell. Check. Stuff was going to die. In game, of course.

"What happened? I thought you were going on a short walk?" Louise questioned. Well, I was too pissed to dodge around the question. Blunt and truthful it is.

"Kirche's pet lizard tried to kidnap me, and I'm pretty sure she wanted to get me in the sack," I said. Louise's mouth dropped. "I headbutted the thing into unconscious, then I threw it in her face." At that Louise giggled. I was sensing some type of rivalry. That certainly didn't bode well for me in the future. I plopped down at the desk, loading up World of Warcraft and vent, plugging in my headset.

"So another one of your games?" Louise asked, moving behind me.

"Yep. The one I was playing when you summoned me," I said, before blinking. Did somehow being summoned while playing WoW have something to do with my newfound weapon creating or summoning capacities? Fascinating if true.

"The one where those weapons come from?" She questioned over my shoulder, looking at the screen.

"Yes and no. They come from the game, yes, but that part of the game isn't out yet," I said, watching as an invite to group flashed across the screen, which I accepted.

"Aw," Louise said, even though I don't think she did. "Either way, we are getting you a sword incase that happens again." I grin.

"That sounds like a good idea," I said, as I hopped into vent. "So Grim, what are we hitting first?"

"UBRS," Grim's voice came through vent loud and clear, despite the confused look from Louise.

"Excellent."

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I'm going to cut this chapter off here. It was my plan to introduce Derf, but it that would have been another three thousand words, easy. Well, I hope you all enjoyed.


	5. Swords of Legend

Boyzilla: Yeah, this chapter was a bit fast. However, Louise will be getting more training in more detail later. In that sense I am your inverse. I've only played for Mists and Warlords, and most of my Warcraft knowledge comes from books or lore youtubers. This wasn't really a dialogue heavy

chapter, and I'll try and keep everything straightened out.

Spoiler warning for Madoka Magika in this chapter. You have been warned.

Also a slight spoiler from the the first Episode of RWBY. You have been warned.

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Isabella

"So how about that one?" Louise asked, pointing to a picture that was on my laptop. I hadn't gotten a translation spell on it yet, but you really didn't one to just pick and choose an anime. I took a quick look at the picture. Nope. Just nope.

"Mirai Nikki? Future Diary? Yeah, I'm just going to say no," I said, face slightly pale. Mirai Nikki. One of the many reasons I have a hard time trusting any show with a character that has pink hair and pink eyes.

"Why not?" Louise question's, before noticing my pale face, "I'm guessing there is a good reason?"

"She's a psychopath, and that's putting it pretty kindly," I said. She then pointed to another reason I didn't trust pink haired characters, Lucy from Elfen Lied. "She is also a psychopath."

"Is there anyone with pink hair that isn't killing anyone?" Louise asked.

"Besides you, quite a few, actually. But normally, if a character has pink hair, it means they have or will go through a lot of terrible things. Like Madoka. Has two of her bests friends die, and another suffered a fate worse than death, and that's all from the twelve episode I watched," I said, grimly.

"Fine, no pink haired characters then," Louise said, before pointing to another picture. "How about this one?"

"Attack on Titan? Very good, but also very bloody. Very Shakespearean in terms of body count," I said, causing Louise to raise her eyebrow, likely questioning what I meant by Shakespearean and body count. "Shakespeare was a playwright during the 16th century. Almost all of his plays were tragedies, and had most main cast died by the end. Attack on Titan is quite similar. By the end of the second episode, all but four characters are confirmed to be alive, with one up in the air. Everyone else, including an over extra quarter of a million others, are dead." Louise just looked at me, before turning back the screen.

"How about this one?" She asked, bringing up something that had to be the title for something.

"RWBY? I haven't heard of that one," I said. That was certainly a new one. Louise shrugged, a gesture I wouldn't expect out of her. Looks like I've been a bad influence.

"Good," Louise said, making me raise an eyebrow. I wonder where she was going with this. "That way I don't have you telling me how everything goes." I resist the urge to sigh. I wasn't that big of a spoiler. After all, I didn't tell her how anything ended.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

P.O.V. Isabella

After backing up every single file on my laptop, locking it down, and then shutting the thing off, I finally gave it to Professor Colbert for whatever translation spells he would need to put on my laptop, Louise and I finally meet at the stables. They had horses on the grounds. Horses! How did I miss that? One of my old friends lived on a horse farm, and I had gotten to ride a horse once or twice when I visited. Sadly there was a difference between getting to do so, and actually being good at it. To say horse riding was a skill I didn't have would be an understatement. Which mean's I going to have to share a horse with Louise.

P.O.V. Louise

"What do you mean you can't ride a horse!" I shouted. Out of all the things my familiar could do, horseback riding wasn't one of them! She could fight nobles, she could transform her weapons, but she couldn't ride a horse? Unbelievable!

"Riding a horse isn't exactly a common skill where I'm from," my familiar said, rubbing the back of her head.

"Then how did you get from place to place then?" I asked.

"Cars. Cars and airplanes," she said. You know what. Fine. I'm just going to go along with this.

"Fine," I said, "Climb on, we're losing time."

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*Three hours and the closest town later*

P.O.V. Louise

My familiar let out a groan of pain.

"I may have played baritone in the school marching band, but, what was that, three hours on horseback?" She groaned about, rubbing the small of her back.

"You used to play in a band?" I question. I was beginning to wonder what exactly had her education been. I mean, what she did know at this point was ridiculous. Reading (not the stuff here, and we had no translation spell for writing, so it was something that was going to have to be taught), math, writing, something call science, clearly skilled in combat, and now music.

"Yeah. Wasn't exactly the best at it, but I still did pretty well, I think," she said, "It was a school course and it sounded like an easy art credit. Shame we didn't have a creative writing class, though. So what exactly are we looking for?" We turned a corner, my familiar staying only a few feet behind me, eyes once again looking everywhere, taking in all the sights she could. The place wasn't hard to find, the weapon's shop being right next to Viemont's elixir shop. My familiar opened the door for me, again without being asked, and we stepped inside.

"Aw, yes, welcome," the man said, Isabella's face seemed to sour after seeing him.

"I would like a weapon for my fa.. Servant," I said. Even if this was a commoner I was talking to, I didn't want to seem like I was crazy, saying I summoned a human familiar.

"Ideally a sword or longknife!" She shouted, head already seeming buried in one of the weapon bins. The man grinned.

"I have just the thing in the back," he said, vanishing for a couple moments, before bringing out a massive sword. He handed it to my familiar, who took it, before inspecting the weapon.

"This is the best item we have in our store," he said, like the weapon was his greatest pride and joy. "It was forged by famous alchemist mage, Lord Schvert of Germania!"

"That's great," my familiar said, almost like she wasn't paying any attention. I could have sworn I heard the sound of gears turning in her head, just like in class yesterday. One, how is that possible, and two, just what is she thinking about?

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P.O.V. Isabella

Something wasn't right with this sword. I was no expert, nor did I claim to be one, but I have used a sword. Well, I owned that one, and even though it was made of wood, I still had a feel for balance of weapon. This sword had none of that balance. Unlike the wooden blade I owned, which felt like it was balanced, this was top heavy. Then where was the coloring. I knew for a fact that this blade looked like it was made of gold. It couldn't be made of fool's gold either, which simply melted down into normal iron. I held it up to my ear, flicking the black with my fingernail.

' _This is a scam!'_ I thought. The blade sounded hollow. It was likely made of gold. It was poorly balanced. This wasn't a weapon. This was something you put on your mantle to look fancy and pretty!

"How about you get me a sword that can actually be used in combat," I snap, "This is nothing more than decoration! Are you trying to get yourself ran out of business by selling a sham?" The was visibly taken back, almost jumping in fright by my harsh tone.

"Yes, right away!" He shrieked, taking the sword and darting back into the backroom.

"What was that about?" Louise asked.

"He was selling us a sham. The thing's poorly balanced, it's made of gold, and I'm pretty sure it's hollow, too." I said, causing Louise to nod.

"Pst, hey buddy, over here," somebody said from behind me, causing me to whip around. This was like the stereotypical drug dealer that always operated out of an alleyway. Only to find nothing. Well, besides the barrel of rusty wea, wait a minute. I wasn't in my own world. I was in a magical one. Which meant swords could talk. Maybe?

"Yes over here!" The voice was definitely coming from the barrel of rusty weapons. Even Louise seemed surprised by this (the first sign that this was a good find). I grabbed the sword, pulling it up out of the barrel. The blade was unimpressive at first glance, covered entirely in rust (look up how to remove rust at a later date). However, it was a talking sword. For me, that was impressive enough, and a clear sign it was magical. For Louise though, that wasn't enough.

"It's a rusty sword!" She nearly shouted. She was at the least using her inside voice.

"It's a talking rusty sword!" I swing the weapon. It felt very balanced and light in my hand. "And it actually has balance. The rust is fixable."

"Hey! Said rusty sword has a name you know!" The sword talked back, a strange attachment on the hilt serving has as (his, her, it's?), mouth. I grin. A magical talking sword that had a name! Any time a blade had a name, it was because either it's wielder was the stuff of legend, or the blade itself was the stuff of legend. Or in some cases, it was both.

"Really?" Louise said, "So what is it?"

"The name is Derflinger!" The sword said (which meant I had a name to look up, once I had figured out the abomination that was this place's written language).

"That doesn't roll of the tongue that well. How about Derf instead?" I said. I could have sworn the response from the blade was pretty much a shrug (how could a sword do that). The man finally came out of the back.

"I think we are pleased with this sword," Louise said, beginning to dig through her pockets, searching for whatever she used to store her money.

"That will be," the man began, before I interrupted.

"Twenty-five or I get the guard involved and will likely get the weapon for free," I snapped. I had no patience for shady business owners.

"That is acceptable," the man said, face show sweat in the most comedic fashion.

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*Somewhere between town and Tristain Academy of Magic*

P.O.V. Isabella

The ride back was going to be quite eventful, something that became evident after an arrow hit a tree that just happened to be near Louise's head. Bandits. It just had to be bandits.

"Stay low," I say, slipping off the horse. This was bad. A person that can make that type of shoot was clearly some type of marksmen. And there where his buddies. I was outnumbered four to one (I was going to avoid getting Louise involved). Despite my duel with Guchie (or maybe because of it), I wanted to keep my newfound powers below the radar, so to speak. However, it was becoming evident I wasn't going to have much choice in the matter.

' _Only noble's can use magic, here, right? Then I'm going to give them quite the scare,'_ I grin, power beginning to flow through me. Magical power. The power of pure, unrelenting, elemental flame. The runes on my left hand ignite with light, and Derf began to change. The weapon changed from a longsword into a curved blade, a combination of red, gold and black. The hilt took on the form of what looked like a bird, a phoenix. The blade shimmered with heat, flames licking from the tip. Derfflinger had turned from one sword of legend to another. Felo'melorn. Elven rune blade. It translated to flamestrike. A name it embodied in every sense of the world. The bandit's took a step back, mostly in fear, even as the flames changed my clothing into robes, magic imprinting itself into my head. I grin as the group stepped back.

' _Partner, what did you do?'_ A voice asked. Was that Derf? Was he speaking into my mind?

' _I don't know how I can do it, but I can turn a weapon into another weapon, in simple terms. Are you ok?'_ I mentally ask. How could I have been that stupid. I had no idea what transforming Derf would do to him.

' _I'm fine, partner, but I don't think these guys are going to give us the time to have much of a conversation!'_ He thought bac. I gripped the blade in my right hand, leaving my left hand free to cast.

"Shoot her!" Someone, I'm guessing the leader of the maltry band, shouted. What spell was I looking for? Oh right, this one.

" **Ice Barrier!** " I shouted, my body becoming encircled by hanging icicles, one of which caught the arrow. And let's fuse that a " **Molten Armor!** " My body started to heat up, another layer of armor appearing around me. Underneath the ice, the thin sheet of molten liquid caused the ice to glow in a eerie manor. If it was nighttime, it would look like I was surrounded by ghosts made of flame.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you not to play with fire? Because you are about to get burned," I snarl. That has got to be the cheesiest thing for a fire mage to say. Ever. No matter. I still had that stance. I snap with my fingers, unleashing a wave of fire, causing the larger of the four to dodge.

"What are you waiting for? Get her!" The man (I'm guessing it's a man), in the back shouted. The two man reluctantly charged me. Their mistake. I began weaving my magic together, flames licking around me. The **Pyroblast** spell took time to weave, but to say I was harmless while building up the spell would be a lie. As I charged up the spell to hit the one on the right, I unleashed two **Inferno Blast's** aimed to the one on left as I chanted. He screamed in pain as the flame's impacted his body, leather armor igniting. He started rolling around, trying to put out the flames. The other didn't get the chance to respond to his comrade being knocked out of the fight as I unleash the spell.

" **Pyroblast!** " I roar, hurling the flaming boulder at him, causing him to drop to knees and roll around desperately to put out the blaze. The two Pyroblasts had build up energy within me.

"The other one! Shoot the other one!" The leader sounded panicked now. And I wasn't going to have any of it, and neither was Louise.

" **Pyroblast! Fireball!** " We shouted at the same time, flaming boulder fusing with Louise's magic, before spiralling off towards it's target. The resulting explosion was far more impressive than Louise's normal ones (I had some help with that), and while it was nowhere near as powerful as Brimir's, it was still a sight to behold. The delayed explosion, fused with the powerful Pyroblast spell, knocked aside the last two combatants like leaves before a storm, swearing their flesh and turning their weapons into a pile of ash. The last one had to be a mage, if what I was looking at was any indication. He looked like he was about to run, so I snapped my fingers again, causing a wall of fire to rise up.

"Mercy!" The man shrieked, eyes dilated and panicked. His robes (who wears robes to a fight? I had at encircled myself with ice and molten rock, the only people would try and engage me in a close quarters fight were fools), were burned, in some places all the way through. I snapped my fingers again, causing fire to rise around him, which caused more panicked screaming.

"You and your entire group will go the nearest town and turn yourselves in," I snarl, "Am I clear?" The man nodded, clearly willing to anything to stay alive, even if it meant an extended prison stay. I kept an eye on the group as they ran off, before returning Derf to his normal, rusty self.

"You ok partner?" He ask. Something wasn't right. I suddenly felt very tired. Extremely tired.

"I'm fine, Derf" I somewhat lied, "I'm just really tired all of a sudden." I climbed back onto the horse after I put the talking sword back in his sheath. As we rode on, I felt my eyes close.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Louise

After the run with the group of bandits (I'm going to have to inform the school about it), my familiar spend the remainder of the trip asleep. She also had managed to pull out another weapon, which I assumed would be the artifact for the Fire Mage she talked about. But that was besides the point. The point being I had to keep her upright on a horse for the rest of the trip! Which wasn't easy. My familiar was nearly a foot taller than me, if not more. Added with her weight, the last stretch of the trip wasn't easy. Not only that, my familiar seemed to enjoy moving around in her sleep, which made keeping her on the horse even harder. And of course, she only woke up just as we were getting back. After that, she went to get her laptop back.

"We're back!" She said joyfully (like she just wasn't just taking a nap a few hours earlier, or fighting off bandits). Which was strange. With her other daggers, she didn't faint (ok, the first time, but the staff was convinced that was because of blood loss). So why was this time so different?

"Do you think the spell worked?" I ask, shaking my way out of my thoughts. Isabella shrugged.

"We have one way to find out," she grinned, unfolding the device, powering it up. She used the strange device to navigate the screen before pulling up what we had agreed to watch. She even put her sword into a chair so it could watch. She hit a button, and pictures slowly rolled across the screen, almost like we were watching real people. Only about a few minutes later did the action start, as a black haired girl with a red cloak kicked one of the thieves straight out of a window, a massive scythe unfolding off her shoulder.

"I want," My familiar muttered.

"Shhhhh!" Derf and I shushed her at the same time.

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And that's a wrap. Originally, I was going to Titan Strike, rather than Felo'melorn for this chapter, but I decided to play mage artifact early on. There is a good reason for why, and I will began explaining exactly what happened next chapter. And before anyone asks, no, I'm not giving Isabella RWBY weapons. No matter how tempting the idea is.


	6. You Know the Princess!

Review answering time!

Touhou: No Zero no Tsukaima, due to the fact I want to keep the fourth wall as intact as possible. Gintama is funny, but I don't think it's humor that Louise would be all that fond of. Either way, most anime watching will be happening off screen, even though Louise may drop a reference or two.

Boyzilla: I knew I was forgetting somebody. But then again, I'm not that familiar with Naruto, or any of the other larger anime series, simply because they are two large for me to spend the time watching. The largest show I've watched is Sailor Moon, and I'm still not through with that. Either way, it was a matter of time before someone asked that question. To say Isabell can transform weapon's is a bit of oversimplification of what she is really doing. The Gandalfr runes in this story are very different (and they aren't the only one that has had modifications). Lifbrasir and Moojvintir have gotten their own changes, along with some significant boosts. Basically, these Gandalfr runes give their wielder the knowledge behind the weapon they are wielding. And, in cases such as with Xal'alath and Felo'melorn, give the user the ability to use magic. However, it some forms of magic burn through more energy, based on the type. Shamen can call their power from the elements, Priests and Paladians the Light, and Druids from nature. Because of this, they are far less taxing than Fel magic and Arcane magic, which are much harder for Gandalfr, hence Isabella's cat nap after the fight. However, she isn't pulling this magic out of thin air. That'll be explained this chapter, so stick around.

Kknd2: Thanks. While humor isn't exactly something I'm going for, I will try to drop humorous moments from time to time. Isabella's working tec is actually going to matter later down the line, but I can't exactly say how.

Now let's get this chapter started, shall we?

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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*Tristain Academy of Magic*

P.O.V. Isabella

The first thing I did in the morning, after breakfast (the most important meal of the day), I decided to pay the principal a visit. For a few reasons. One of which was when I would be getting a bed. Louise had written to her mother on the matter, (I was looking forward to meeting her, despite Louise's protests), but so far we, or I, had heard nothing about the matter. I was curious if at the very least a letter had shown up. I mean, I trusted Louise, but whenever her family came up in conversation, she would panic. Almost like she didn't want me to meet them. A strange conundrum. Maybe her family was important? I reached the top of stairs, before stopping.

' _And that person looks like trouble,'_ I thought. The man looked fancy, and was clearly pleased with himself. If there was anyone way for someone to look like a perverted asshole, this would be the guy. And he just took notice of me.

"Are you a servant?" He asked, a smug grin on his a face, begging to be whipped off.

"A private one. And most certainly not for sale," I had to bite back the urge to snarl. It was a bit of a lie, (I didn't serve Louise, but I have been training her to better use her magic). But still, as a Familiar, I wouldn't, or couldn't, be for any type of sale.

"Shame," he said, shrugging "I could always use for servants. But I've already bought out one contract today." Ok, he was so begging to get smacked. And wait, who's contract did he buy out?

"Who's?" I question. I needed to know. If it was Siesta, he was more than a perverted asshole, he was a pedoplolic perverted asshole . I mean, she was only seventeen!

"One of servant girls. Long, black hair. Large chest," I swear I could see the man drooling. Yep, it was most certainly Siesta. But how was I going to play this? Beating the man up certainly wasn't the answer. A duel? No, such an event would draw in too much attention, especially because I would need to win. A lie? That wasn't exactly my style, but then again, desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Interesting," I said, keeping the glee out of my voice. I was going to enjoy his reaction to this.

"Interesting? What do you mean by that?" He asked. Good, I think I got him.

"Nothing much. I'm just surprised they didn't warn you, that's all. Then again, I would be surprised if you haven't heard about that incident yet," I had to grin inside my head to keep me from doing so right now. Something that wasn't helped by the fact that the man's face started to turn pale.

"What do you mean, warn me?" He said, voice no longer smug, the air of confidence having vanished. Well, that just confirmed that I had the man's immediate attention, and potentially his survival instincts.

Nothing much. Except for the past person who tried to harm her was attacked by a shadowy apparition, and nearly died," I said, doing my best to sound concerned. I could of sworn I heard him mutter something about how the rumors were true.

"You're about to see the principal, right? Do you mind waiting a few more seconds?" He stammered, sweat dripping from his ghostily pale face. I had him. Hook. Line. And sinker.

"Of course not," I bow slightly, keeping up the act. A few minutes later, the man left (hopefully I would never see him again). I waited until the man had gone out earshot, before knocking on the door.

"Come in," a voice of an old man answered from within, and with that, I opened the door. The room was very spacious, as to be expected. The old man, who I assumed was the principal, looked like a sagely man, with long white hair and a long, white beard. Very Gandalf.

"I'm assuming you had something to do with that," a voice came from my left, causing me to turn.

' _Green hair. Why am I surprised anymore?'_ I thought. I mean, what's next, purple!

"I have no idea what you mean," I say, deciding to play this for all it was worth, "I was merely informing that he was about to make a poor life choice."

"So you would have tried to hurt Count Mott if he did try to take the girl off grounds?" The green haired secretary (that's what I was guessing her job was).

"I would have challenged him to a duel, but I'd much rather not play all my hand at once," I grinned. "I'm pretty sure you guys are already busy with all the rumors flying around without me beating a count senseless." A cough came from the desk near the window. Oh, right, I need to focus on the task at hand.

"Is there something you need?" He asked. Straight to the point, was he? That was good.

"A few things, actually. Well, mostly questions, anyway," He nodded, signalling me to go on. "I was hoping that you heard from Louise's mother about the current, housing, situation." The man seemed to pause when I mentioned Louise's mother. Ok, that confirms it. When the sixty plus teacher knows about someone, it is a sure sign that they have some type of reputation.

"I've been continuing teach Louise on how to use her brand of magic. Do you think there is any nearby places off school grounds that would allow for me to train her further without having to worry too much about damages? And do you have any magic or damage resistant wood lying around?" I go on. He nodded in response.

"I can't help you with the first, and the second shouldn't be too hard to accomplish. But I must ask, why do you want enchanted wood?" He asked.

"Quite simple, really. I want to make some target dummies that can actually hold up to something a little more forceful," I said.

"I see. I'm going to assume this has something to with yesterday, when people heard panicked shouting and found burn marks in one of the courtyards," the old man chuckled. Damnit, how did he already know about that? Oh right. The principal, aka, skilled mage, of a magical school. It wouldn't surprise me if he had some type of all seeing eye thing going on. Actually, he better not have one of those.

"Very well, I will see what I can do," he said. Good, because after that disgusting Count, I needed to vent on something. Something, that ideally, wasn't alive. Or I could simply strongarm Guche or whatever his name was into creating more of those Bronze whatevers to fight. Assuming he didn't pass out from seeing me, that is.

"Thank you," I grin, turning to leave, something else popping into my mind. "Has my butterfly knife turned up yet?" He shook his head. Damn. It was beginning to seem the person who took it had run off with the thing, and if that was the case, the odds of me seeing it again were slim to none. I exited the room, closing the door behind me.

"It's a shame she doesn't wear a skirt," I heard a muffled voice came through the door. Ok, screw Gandalf, he was more like the stereotypical anime old man pervert.

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*Trastian Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

P.O.V. Isabella

"You did WHAT?!" Siesta shouted in my ear.

"I simply told him that buying out the contract wasn't a good idea," I said, trying to put together the third and final target dummy. Along with an internal ' _ow'_. She was right next to me. No need for shouting.

"You lied to a noble!" She practically shrieked. I should probably calm her down, before my eardrums pay the price.

"Lied is a harsh word. I merely informed him about a rumor that hardly anyone knows the details to," I said. "So what if I omitted a few details, but what he doesn't know certainly won't kill him." Hopefully that does the trick.

"And what would have happened if that didn't work?" Siesta asked. That was a pretty simple answer.

"I would have dueled him," I grinned, "And I would have let him pick his poison too." Siesta paled a considerable degree. I really needed to stop doing that. It almost made me sound like a mass murderer or assassin or something.

"What?!" She shrieked again. My ears are a thing, damnit. I was going to have a headache at the end of the day at this rate.

"Not literally!" I said, raising my hands defensively. "I have access to thirty-seven different weapons. I would let him take him pick, then beat him." I had to stop myself from saying thirty-six. Derf was his own weapon, afterall. Even if after an hour of vigorous scrubbing failing to remove any rust. He was quite literally, a diamond in the rough. A very jealous diamond in the rough (not that I blame in that department).

"About time you got the number right partner," Derf said, popping slightly out of the sheath, causing Siesta to jump back slightly in shock. Today was really not her day. I mean, contract nearly bought out by a pedo pervert, having the person that prevented that having 'lied' to do so, then the fact that if he didn't bite, I would fight him with a rusty talking sword. Or any of the other weapons I had (something that became apparent after I turned him into Titanstrike by mistake).

"We've only been partner's for what, all of three days?" I grin, "Cut me a bit of slack, will you?" Ever since I used Xal'alath, I had set my mind on having thirty-six weapons. Adding Derf, a sentient sword into the equation was something I hadn't anticipated, and it was causing quite a few Freudian slips.

"Fine, I'll let you off easy. This time," the sword threatened, even though his tone was joking. Siesta, on the other hand was speechless. Maybe I shouldn't try spellcasting today. Seriously, I might cause her head to explode.

"Why?" I heard her faintly mutter. I think I know exactly what she was referring to.

"Because you're a nice person. You and Louise are the only two people who even bother approaching me on their own free will. I'm not going to let someone take you away that easily. Especially a pedoplialic preverted asshole like that," I say. Something about it seemed to make her turn an interesting shade of red, hopefully from the swearing. The last thing I wanted was another Kirche situation, which was getting to the point of critical mass. She pretty much tried to attach herself to my arm at one point, which lead to me carrying around Tyr's Hand for most of the day, bubbling myself whenever she tried to jump me. Seriously, I had no interest in romance at the moment. Especially after the breakup. It wasn't bad or anything. I just wanted some time to myself. Without drama.

"Do you need any help?" She asked, something was here for in the first place. As in, she noticed my project and wanted to help, not me telling her to do so. Her, out of all the workers here, was the only one that wasn't scared of me. Not that I blame them. I would expect them to be even more scared of me than the children. Not only was I able to beat a noble, fairly easily at that, I had used shadow magic, something that wasn't know here. Even if it was, it certainly wouldn't be shown in the best of light (no pun intended), like it was on Azeroth. If nothing else, I wouldn't be surprised if they thought I was a demon.

"Nope. I think I just about got this," I grunted, before stepping back and admiring my work. A straight line of three target dummies. They looked they were ripped straight of World of Warcraft, even if the construction was extremely poor. I mean, really poor. I was terrible at working with my hands when it came to making things (as my chemistry teacher can attest to, seeing as my hot air balloon nearly caught fire).

"They look, nice?" I could hear Siesta's cringe. What I had put together was most certainly cringe worthy. However, how pretty they looked was something that didn't matter. What did matter is if they could hold together. And I know exactly how to do that. I think I've been having way too much fun with my new toys, but then again, I did have limit's, and I needed to stretch them. My weapon's where powerful, but sometimes in a chaotic fight, I was going to need to swap one out for another. So far, I haven't been able to do that, having to turn Derf back into his natural state before repeating the process. Not only was it slow, but it was taxing.

"I never did get an A in art class," I grin, turning the situation into a one sided joke, "Derf, you ready?" I drew the talking sword from his sheath.

"So what are you using this time, partner?" The sword asked as I held him in my right hand.

"I'm thinking Felo'melorn," I grin, flame's encasing Derf and I.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you have crush on this weapon," Derf teased, his shape transforming into the elven rune-blade. As Derf's transformation ended, mine began, turning my normal clothes into red and gold robes.

"Nope. That's Icebringer and Soulrender. The Blades of the Fallen Prince," I said, twirling Derf-Felo'melorn in my hand (I knew to call Derf, Derf, but the fact he was taking on a weapon with a name was going to cause problems later).

' _So what's the plan with this, partner?'_ Derf mentally asked. Yeah, the telepathic link was also a thing. Somehow.

' _Push myself as far as I can, and then some,'_ I responded, letting my magic build up.

' _You sure that's a good idea?'_ Derf responded. From what I've picked up about Derf and que's from him, when he didn't call me partner, he was worried.

' _Not exactly. What is a good idea is learn exactly what my limits are, and if I can push them further. After all, I'm supposed to protect Louise, right? How am I supposed to do that if I don't know exactly what I can do?'_ I project back to Derf. I swear I heard his mental chuckle.

' _Alright, partner. Let's see how far you can push yourself. Just don't pass out this time,'_ Derf teased. Damn, a sword with sass. Never thought I would see the day.

"I make no promises. After all, we're about to do the **Time Warp**!" Purple and bronze energy began to swirl around me, with an hourglass appearing above my head, spinning faster and faster, before turning into a clock. The hands moved slowly at first, then moved faster and faster. Ok, so this is what it was like to be under the effects of a **Time Warp** spell. I'd much rather not see **Bloodlust** then. Alright then. Let's crank up the heat.

" **Combustion!** " Flames began to swirl around me, much like they did when I transformed. I felt the flames lick around my body, empowering my spells. I became a whirlwind, **Fireball's** , **Pyroblast's** , and **Inferno Blast's** launching toward my target of choice, igniting the wood without actually burning it. Even after **Combustion** faded, I had managed to figure out a rhythm. **Fireball** gets a crit, follow it up into an **Inferno Blast** , followed by an instant **Pyroblast** or **Flamestrike**. But I was burning through whatever it was I using to cast these spells, rapidly. **Time Warp** wasn't helping, the spell allowing me to cast even faster. Therefore, use more energy. I wanted to see if I could actually handle more than forty seconds going all out. I could, if only just barely.

" **Meteor!** " I shouted, ending the chain of spells. The sphere of rock and flame slammed into the training dummies with a crash, as I flopped onto my back, panting and covered in sweat. With Derf, and my clothes returning to normal (I was going to have to wash the latter, thank you Louise for remembering we needed to buy clothes will we were in town).

"What? Was? That?" Oh, right I forgot about Siesta. Damnit. "Since when could you do that?" Wow. I didn't think angry was one of Siesta's emotions.

"That I'm aware of, about three days time," I said. The honest truth on that one. In all honesty, Felo'melorn was a hinge bet. While I was able to use Xal'alath, Felo'melorn was a rune blade. It actually used magic, not shadow magic. While I hoped I could use it for some type of magic, what I could do was beyond what I had expected. I was beginning to feel like a magical girl at this point.

' _Wait. Magical Girl?'_ I blink. That almost makes sense. These runes came from Louise, who was believed to be harmless. They gave me a power that I couldn't understand out of nowhere. And whenever I tapped into those powers, I would get a costume change. It fit. Pretty well, actually.

"What?" She said blankly.

"I know," I said. I swear I could hear the turning of gears within her brain (I thought I was the only one that could do that).

"That's impossible," she said, continuing, "Unless you are somehow draining strength away from Louise to make up for the fact you shouldn't be able to use magic." That's crazy.

"That's. That's almost crazy enough to work, actually, and it fit's one of my hypotheses about her and her explosion's, anyway," I say, pulling myself up into a sitting position. The next thing I know, I had been talk hugged from behind, by none other than Louise herself.

"I did it I did it I did it!" Louise was beside herself with joy.

"Did what?" I mumble. I just got hit by the loppyness. It was going to take a lot to stay awake.

"I used magic and it didn't explode!" … Well, I'm certainly awake now.

P.O.V. Louise

I can't believe it! I did it! I don't know if Isabella trying to teach me about my explosions allowed me to move past it, but I don't care! This has to be the happiest day of my life! My familiar quickly seemed to wake herself up (no doubt messing around with her weapon's), while the maid (Siesta was her name), looked like something had grown an extra head (I don't think it was directed at me, or my familiar).

"Really?" She rubbed her eyes, finally sitting herself up after my surprise hug knocked her over. "Doesn't class end in like twenty minutes?" I rubbed the back of my head.

"The teacher passed out from shock of me actually succeeding," I said, causing my familiar to giggle.

"Ouch," she grinned slightly, "Can you show me?" I nodded, placing the three small pebbles on the ground. I drew my wand, focusing on the stones, which began to glow with light. Before promptly exploding, knocking my familiar across the courtyard. What? What just happened? I performed the spell just fine a few minutes ago! Why did it go back to an explosion? Why? Why was this happening.

"Well, Siesta, it appears that you are the freaking Sherlock Holmes of magical mishaps," my familiar said, trying to sit herself back up, and almost failing (what exactly had she been doing out here?). And what did she say about Siesta?

"What?!" I nearly shreak. I need to stay calm. I need to keep my temper under control.

"I just thought that when Isabella uses magic, she is taking some of your's," Siesta stammered, clearly frightened by the explosion.

' _What? That doesn't even make any sense!'_ I thought, before my familiar stood up.

"It makes sense, in a way," Isabella said, standing herself up, "So let's get to experimenting … dizzy," she muttered as she fell on her face.

"Partner, you barely have enough strength to stand, let alone even attempt magic. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to allow you to do that," Derf, my familiar's talking sword said, popping out of his sheath slightly. Did she really just spend that much energy casting spell's? She looked like she was about to pass out.

"Fine. We'll do it tomorrow," she muttered making another attempt to stand up.

"We can't! The princess is arriving tomorrow for the exhibition in a few days," I shouted, panicked. I forgot to tell her about the exhibition!

"Princess? Exhibition?" I hear her say groggily, before flopping over. Yeah, she was out of it. "We'll do it afterwards."

"Does she normally snore?" Siesta asked. Sure enough, my familiar was out like a light. Again! I'm going to tell her to stop using magic at this rate. I still couldn't get over the fact that my familiar, from a world without magic, could somehow use it better than I can! Though, she does think that Siesta's crazy theory is true.

"Uh, do you think you can help me carry her up to my room," I turn to Siesta. The girl nodded. There was no way I was going to be able to carry my familiar up to my room by myself.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's Room*

"I don't understand why you want that knife back so badly," Derf said. My familiar let out a huff of annoyance.

"One, it was a gift from my aunt. Two, I want to do a knife throwing routine, which is something far more impressive if you have more than just two knives," She huffed, crossing her arms. "I'll just have to manage."

"It's a butterfly knife! It's not like you don't have anything else that can protect you," Derf said. I'm beginning to think that sword has jealousy issues.

"I may not always be in a situation where drawing a sword is the best idea, Derf. I'd much rather have a weapon you could hide just about anywhere, just to be safe," she snapped back. Something told me this conversation was going to go somewhere that I certainly didn't want to hear about.

"Or could make that scythe gun that Ruby has! Or that hammer thing! Or that spear sniper! That would be impressive!" I interrupted trying to get the conversation back into safe territory. I did not need to know how and where you could hide a knife on a person.

"I can only make artifact weapon's from WoW, remember," she stated, leaning backwards, "and besides, I'd much rather keep what I'm showing off as low key as possible." Right, I forgot about that. But that did give me an idea.

"As low key as taking off your shirt in front of Guchie?" I teased. I heard her snicker before she bursted out laughing.

"Oh, it's not like he see's more flesh on Kirche every single day," she grinned. We both looked at each other, before bursting out laughing.

"I'm missing all the context about this joke, aren't I?"

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

"I still can't believe you forgot to tell me about the exhibition," my familiar said. I resisted the urge to groan.

"It slipped my mind, ok. Besides, you're the one that doesn't want to use that weapon technique of yours. We would win for sure," I shoot back.

"I'm just giving you a hard time, that's all. I'm just simply not going to pull out an Ashbringer because the masses demand it, anyway. I just have a day or two less to practice and ideally find some razor thread, that's all. It's far better than giving a speech, anyway," she grinned, stretching herself slightly. "Even though I'm slightly worried. After all, hasn't there been a lot of break in's recently? A thief by the name of Fouquet?"

"How did you hear about that?" I asked. The whole writing thing was a work in progress. I mean, there was progress, but it was still no where it needed to be.

"The same way I know about that crazy person running around in Albion. Even though the described costume seems to be quite familiar." I could have sworn she had to resist the urge to rub her temple.

"Princess of the Kingdom of Tristain, Her Highness, Lady Hentrietta has arrived!" A shout went out. I could have sworn Isabell looked again at the unicorn's as they passed (did they not have unicorn's where she was from?).

"I will never understand how hair color's work here," I heard my familiar mutter. Normally, I would let something like that slide, by the Princess was a childhood friend (good luck getting me to admit it), which earned her a swift elbow. Something told me she didn't really notice, but she did stay quite.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard (near the training dummies, which are placed against the void tower)*

Multiple spell's later, mostly us, combining my **fireball** 's (which I had no idea if they were actually working) with her **Fireball** , **Pyroblast** , and **Inferno Blast** spells, my familiar decided we need to try a different element. One that wouldn't end in what she called a **Pyroclastic Detonation** (whatever that meant). So I switched to **Wind Hammer** , a spell that unleashed a blast of air. Surprisingly, Siesta's theory held true, the end result of these being a normal joint spell (even if they seemed much stronger than what I had normally seen displayed). She called the fusion of my **Wind Hammer** and her spells **Dragon's Breath** (why was she naming them?).

"Come on! Just one more spell!" Isabella was bubbly. I don't think I've seen her this excited. Ever.

"Fine. One more, then you're off to figure out whatever it is you're doing for the exhibition," I said. Ultimately, I was curious enough to see what was going to come from this. She raised her left arm, flames weaving through her fingertips as I raised my wand. I don't know what it was with that blade she used, but for someone with thirty six weapons, she sure seemed to be fixating on that one.

" **Wind Hammer! Flamestrike!** " We shouted at the same time. We waited for a second. Nothing. Ok? Where we both out of willpower? No, we were still on our feet. My familiar was certainly handling herself better than yesterday.

"Was it a dud?" Isabella asked aloud. Before I could respond, a massive whirlwind appeared around the targets. But instead of being made of wind, it was made of fire! We just stared at in shock until it vanished. "Whelp, I think I'm pyro-sexual now."

"What?" Derf and I questioned at the same time.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Headmaster's Office*

P.O.V. Third Person

"I see," Old Osmond said. "So that is the reason you visited." The old man certainly wasn't up to his normal trick's, the white mouse that was his familiar sitting on his shoulder.

"That is part of the reason, yes," the Princess, Hentrietta, stated. Before she could continue, the sound of a small explosion. Unlike the normal explosion's that had become a factor of day to day life at the school, the blast stayed sustained for around ten seconds, before slowly rumbling away.

"What was that?!" Agnes, Captain of the Musketeer's shouted, hand towards her sword.

"If I had to guess, that would be Miss. Valliere's familiar. If I remember correctly, yesterday had something to do with a condensed meteor strike," the old principal said, noticing the mixture of shock and rage on the two girl's faces. "Don't alarmed. She takes the utmost care during her 'training sessions'."

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

P.O.V. Isabella

I had finally managed to find something akin to razor wire, thank's to Siesta (I swore I got some of the dirtiest look from some of the other servants). Add another thing to the list of things I owe people. Louise and her family for a bed (unless I find a way to get my bed here), Louise for the extra set of clothes she bought me (I usually wore those while washing mine), and now Siesta for the help and trouble finding this.

' _Maybe a t-shirt from home. If I somehow get back home,'_ I thought, bring with it a pang of homesickness. Maybe portal's? Pure arcane power, enough to create a dimensional gateway, perhaps? I mean, if I somehow got brought here, from earth, then that barrier isn't exactly the strongest thing ever. If I punched in one way, I should be able to punch out just as easily.

' _Focus,'_ I shake my head. Now was certainly not the time to figure out how to punch holes into hypothetical dimensional barriers. After all, I had to prepare for a show.

' _Let's start off with something simple,'_ I thought as I began juggling the knives. Send one up, then the other. Slow and methodical. No runes lighting up. Nothing overly fancy. I slowly speed things up, knives going airborne faster and faster. I did need to end on some type of high note. A flourish, if you may. And that's exactly wait the thin string is for. One end attached to my throwing knives, the other tied to my index fingers. I suddenly threw both up at the same time, waiting until they reached the highest point of their arc. I twitched my index finger's subtly (and with as much force as possible), sending the knife's speeding back to my hands, as I grabbed the hilt and threw them outward, before twitching my finger's again to bring them back. I repeated the process a few more times. Fairly simple, and little to no risk of me losing a finger, or cutting myself open (something you have to be careful about when you were using knifes, and I'd much rather not show off sewing my flesh closed in front of the princesses).

Either way, it would be a good idea to at the least to see exactly what the competition was, anyway. Where was training even taken place, anyway? Did training even need to happen? Mental link and perfect obedience and all that. Well, I wouldn't say perfect obedience. Kirchie couldn't get her lizard to come any closer than ten feet of me without the poor thing freezing up (still had survival instincts, something that couldn't be said for Guchie). Speaking of Guchie, he was in a pile of rose petal's, gushing over the giant mole he summoned as his familiar. The girl he was cheating on (I never learned her name, anyway, something I needed to do), had summoned a frog. That was dancing (I've seen some stuff, clearly). Kirchie's lizard let out a spiral of flame (which was impressive). And few other things. Nothing major, I should be able get second, third place, if not first, relatively easily.

' _Wait, what about that dragon?'_ Just as the thought slipped through my head, the blue beast came down a few feet away from me. Yeah, blue. In  WoW blue dragons where the guardians of magic, and like the other flight's, could take on a human form. I doubted the same rule applied here, but it certainly looked smarter than it acted sometimes. It looked at me slightly funny, almost like it knew I was thinking about it.

"Uh, hi?" I waved, slightly uncomfortable under its gaze. It was a lot smarter than it looked. It turned around after a few seconds going off to his or her master (how do you tell a dragon's gender? Up close inspection? That sounds like a bad idea). The small bluenette was reading a book, not even really caring about the competition. Not that I blame her. She summoned a dragon! The odds of me topping that were slim to none, even if I pulled out an Ashbringer or even an infernal. Could I control an infernal? That's something I will have to find out at a later date. I mean, living meteor that doubles as a golem? If that isn't useful, then I really had no idea what is.

"Have you figured what you are doing for the exhibition?" Siesta asked, suddenly appearing behind me. For a school meant for training mages, they certainly had an alarming amount of ninja's. I nearly jumped a foot in the air as I whipped around, heart nearly jumping out of my chest.

"Are sure you aren't some type of ninja or something?" I ask, trying to calm my beating heart.

"Ninja?" Siesta looked confused. Right, this place has a connection to medieval Europe, not feudal Japan.

"Sneaky people, but yeah, I've got it all figured out. Relatively safe knife throwing routine," Siesta's eye widened in slight alarm as I finished.

"Are you sure that's safe?" Concern was clear in her voice.

"Safer than dropping an infernal behind the stage," I joked, "besides, I have no intention of losing a finger. That would be a poor first impression, to say the least." Siesta laughed slightly at my joke.

"I wish you good luck then," she smiled, before running off to deal with whatever she needed to do for the day. With a dragon as competition, I was certainly going to need it.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Hallway*

After a few more trial runs of my performance, I decided to call it quits for the day (after returning to the abandoned courtyard, so nobody got hurt by flying knives attached to nearly invisible thread), and headed back to Louise's room. If I was going to put on a show tomorrow, I was going to need to be in top form. And to be in top form, I needed sleep. Which I would be getting ready for, if it wasn't for the fact there was a blonde girl with green eyes was guarding the door. Not only that, she was wearing the same uniform as the people who showed up with princesses. Why was a member of the princess's personal guard guarding Louise's room? Don't tell me she was a friend of the princess. That meant I was going to have try even harder at the exhibition.

"By the order of the princess, this room is closed for the time being," the blonde said authoritatively. I shrug, leaning up against the wall opposite of her. "What exactly are you doing?"

"Waiting until it isn't. I'll have you know I sleep here," I said, remaining as calm as possible. Nothing major. Just talking to a member of the princess's personal guard. Who could kill me (or at least try) if I did anything she didn't like. Which made the fact I noticed her hand move toward her sword all the more alarming.

"So you're Valliere's familiar," she said flatly. This wasn't exactly good, and Louise wouldn't be happy (nor would the princess, I think her name was Hentrietta), if there was a sword fight in the halls.

"The one and only," I said, showing her the runes on my hand, trying to keep the panic out of my voice. She was intimidating, and certainly wasn't a mage (what type of mage had a gun?).

"Do you have a name? Besides death's bride?" Her hand inched ever closer to her blade. I was called death's bride? Damn. What type of rumors have been flying around? I guess I'm going to see quite a few parent's 'worried' about their child's safety tomorrow.

"Just call me Isabella, none of that death's bride nonsense. For all we know, death could be a girl," I quipped. That probably wasn't a good idea.

"Or a lesbian," she relaxed slightly. I don't know which took me off guard the most, the lesbian remark (not being judgemental, I just had no idea people actually recognize that type of thing here) or the fact that what I had said had somewhat defused the situation. "So are you a noble or what? I know that you can use magic." Her tone became ice cold. Issue's with noble's, yet she works under the princess. How did that work, exactly? You know what, I don't want to know.

"It's more along the lines of me using some of my Masters magic," I said, almost calling Louise, Louise, much rather than master. I was in public right now, and I did tell her I would play the good servant (even if nobody was buying it). She shoot me a confused look, so I continued. "I'm incapable of using magic on my own. Therefore, I borrow some from my master." At least I think that's how it works.

"I see," she muttered, eyes never leaving me. She would have asked more, if it wasn't for the fact the door opened at the very moment, to reveal the princess. I quickly decide to bow slightly as she entered the hallway. She smiled slightly, before nodded slightly to the guard, who somehow went even more ramrod straight than she already was (how that was possible, I do not know). The two had left my line of vision before I dared move again, finally entering Louise room. She squeaked, realizing that I was outside in the hallway this inter time.

"When were you going to tell me you and the princess are on a first name basis?"

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And that's a wrap. Yeah, I skipped the Count Mott fight for a lot reasons. Private one's mostly, but it plan had gone through so many rewrites and changes, I just scrapped it, and Isabella use her head, rather than her fists. And yes, this will be the last we see of the cowardly count. Up next is the exhibition, along with round one against Fouquet. Sorry I was late. I had a lot of school work, and I just finished watching Madoka Magica (which is depressing).

Also, can you guys spot all the reference's? This chapter is littered with the things, one of which my parents made me write in.

I should spell out exactly what this universe's Gandalfr runes do. The first is the normal, weapon mastery. Second is her ability to transform weapon's into (typically) more powerful artifact. This fused with her weapon mastery, gives her the ability to use spells or techniques used by the artifact's corresponding class and spec (Ashbringer, Retribution Paladin, or The Warblades of Valor, Fury Warrior). In the case of magic artifact's, Siesta's guess is spot on. The familiar barrow's magic from the master. A lot actually. Isabella is simply really bad at it (at the moment), with Sasha being able to do more with a lot less. Different types of magic use more magic than others, the most being fel (Demon Hunters are the exception) and arcana. The others are far less taxing, but they aren't unlimited. Lifbrasir and Moojvintir have also been changed, along with the fact that Isabella will not be this universe's Lifbrasir (due to the fact she's powerful enough as it stands, almost too much so)(I also shouldn't drop something like that as a spoiler, but it needs to be done).

Hopefully you all enjoyed, and I will hopefully see you next time.


	7. The Show

Here is the list of references I made last chapter. "After all, we're about to do the **Time Warp**!" is a reference to a song in the movie Rocky Horror Picture Show, called _Time Warp_. "Whelp, I think I'm pyro-sexual now," is a call to a webcomic called Questionable Content, were one of the character's say "Forget girls, I'm audio sexual now." Death is a girl is a reference to Marvel Comics, where death is actually a girl. Did I make any accidental ones?

Time to answer reviews.

Boyzilla: That's pretty much it. However, getting Isabella to hit her overload limit isn't easy, because Derf could easily put a stop to it (part of his purpose as a sentient sword is to tell when they are getting to that limit, and stop his wielder before they get there). Xal'alath is meant to have it's wielder lose control, and she didn't have Derf to act as extra reinforcement. Any longer in that form though, Isabella would definitely suffer mental damage.

Before I began, I would like to make a shout out to Korracontinued on tumblr, who as agreed to draw Isabella. Thank you so much for doing this!

Now let's move on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Louise

"When were you going to tell me you and the princess are on a first name basis?" I couldn't read exactly what was going through my familiar's head. It was a mixture of shock, and maybe a little impressed, but held no small bit of annoyance for not mentioning such in important detail, (anger, thankfully wasn't there, and if it was, it was clearly well hidden).

"It never came up?" I question, before realizing the trap within her wording, "What makes you think that?!" Well besides the fact I just accidentally admitted to it. I don't know whether she planned it that way, or if she simply got lucky in her wording.

"You mean besides the fact you not only just admitted to it, add that with her actually showing up, personally, to your quarters, likely for a long talk," Isabella looked quite smug with herself. "Something that I doubt happens to every single person." For someone who at times acted like a child, she certainly could put things together.

"Are you mad?" I said. Making her angry right before the exhibition was likely not good. For anyone. Isabella frowned.

"Angry? Impressed in more ways than one would be more accurate," her frown turning into a grin.

"What do you mean?" I was in slight state of shock, so I didn't notice I had spoken out loud. What exactly did she mean by that?

"For starters, it says a lot about your family, that you were allowed to be buddy-buddy with the princess. The second is for you specifically. Many would try to use that to their advantage, but you clearly haven't. That speaks miles about your character, and how much you value that friendship," She suddenly picked me up (being a few feet taller than me, and much stronger, this was easy for her to accomplish), pulling me into a bear hug. "I'm so proud of you." Hug was similar to that of my older sister, Cattleya, only if she could break my bones with a single hug. I quickly blinded the beging's of tears that had begun to form in my eyes (thankfully, she didn't notice). Only Cattleya said things like that to me.

"You really mean that?" After being called a failure by just about everyone, part of me was skeptical. I knew she meant it, but part of me felt unsure. My familiar certainly wasn't easy for me to understand. She cared less about a person's social standing, and more about who the person was. It was a mindset I'd never seen before, let alone heard of.

"Yep. I'm willin to bet that you could take down a castle on your own one day," she said, finally (thankfully) putting me down. "And that also means I'm going to have to try extra hard tomorrow. After all, I don't disappoint your best friend, now do I?" She grinned slightly, before ruffling through my pink hair.

"So what exactly are you doing?" I ask. I knew her power was off limits. More out the fact multiple parent's would be there (sadly not my own), and she didn't want a mass panic, or to many people pulling students out of school. So what exactly was she doing? Sword retain? She said she didn't know much about sword play, but had picked up one in the past (and never a spear, despite using one to tear apart Guchie's valkyrie). Something with her knives was far more likely. But what, exactly? It would need to be something impressive, but not threatening.

"Knife throwing," her face breaking out into a grin. I knew it. "But I'd feel safer if you stayed a few feet behind me." I blink. Well, if it was for my safety, sure. That did, however, raise more than a few questions. So long as she doesn't do something stupid or impulsive (I was more worried about the later).

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

P.O.V. Louise

To say my familiar was impressed by the festivity would be an understatement. In wonder would be slightly more accurate (though she wasn't that concerned, something about being a human familiar giving her an advantage). I was worried about Tabatha's dragon most all. As rare a summon like Isabell was, she still wasn't a dragon. Her routine would have to be the best it could be, and it still might not be enough.

"Next up, Miss Louise de la Valliere!" The announcer shouted, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked up at my familiar, slightly nervous. She gave me a curt nod of reassurance. We quickly made our way to the stage. I introduce her, take a few steps back, and let her do her thing. The girl remained straight up. No slouching. Eye's straight ahead, not looking at the rows of students and teachers in front of the stage.

"This is my familiar, Isabella Whelan," I said, taking a few steps back as she took a bow. Respectable, at the least (though it was certainly masculine in nature). Even though a I heard some muttering come from the crowd, it was nothing I could really make out. She reached into her pockets, pulling out her knives (she corrected me calling them daggers, I still didn't know the difference). Even from where I stood, I thought I saw Guchie flinch. However, Isabell started her routine, throwing one of her knives into the air, letting it fall back into her hand. Followed by the other. Up and down, up and down.

' _This is incredibly simple,'_ I thought, looking at the display. It was fancy, I could give it that much, but it wasn't all that impressive. She was really counting on the human familiar things, wasn't she. It didn't stay that way for long though. She quickly began picking up speed. Quick throws, and quick catch, followed by the knife spiralling upwards again. It was fairly basic, but it did show off her speed and coordination. What I wasn't prepared for, however, was the fact that it was really a warm up.

' _By the Founder! What is she doing?'_ her knives started flying through the air, almost if by magic. I squinted. I knew by this point, unless she had one of her artifact's, magic was something beyond her grasp. My first guess would be that she was secretly using one, but whenever she did have one, the runes on her left hand glowed. Which was something they weren't doing. She was playing off a rumor. But which one? A trick was likely. I caught a glimmer of something was the two blades danced. Did she really attach string to each end of her knives? If that was the case, where did she tie the other end to? Certainly not to the other. I saw her fingers twitch slightly, and weapon's followed the movement. She attached some type of string between her fingers and her weapon's! Out of all the, no this is something she would actually do.

' _It's kind of like Penny, actually,'_ it was a fair comparison (she was the first of us two to figure out exactly how Penny used her weapon). While the two knifes were smaller, and far less numerous, than Penny's own blades. The twirling ended with the weapon's being pulled back to her hands, before performing a slash (likely to cut the whatever she was using to move around her knives), with the blades returning to her pockets. Which was followed by another bow.

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P.O.V. Louise

"How did you do that?" I look up at my familiar. During the time while the judges were deciding who won, I had pulled my familiar to the side. She had already been asked the question several times, only to respond with "a magician never reveals her tricks," (whatever that meant). She looked around to see if nobody was following.

"String. I tied string to the knife's then to my fingers. Thin string. An illusion, in a way," she grinned. Of course she played off a rumor. She could be childish, and despite it, surprisingly smart. Or at least she seemed to be.

"Kind of like Penny, then," I grinned, noticing her pause. She didn't think of that, did she?

"I didn't think of that," she slouched over, clearly annoyed with herself for failing to remember exactly how the girl controled her fan of blades. Only my familiar could do something like that. She suddenly looked up, straightening her back. "Damn, that's something you don't see every day." I blinked, slightly confused. Before noticing the golem that was standing in front of the tower. Which promptly noticed us. What is it doing in the first place? Was it trying to break in? And who was controlling it? Why?

"You're out of luck!" it's rider, likely the one who created it as well, shouted, as the golem's hand shot forward in attempt to grab us both.

"Shit! Get behind me!" Isabell shouted, pushing me back before drawing Derf, white light pouring from the weapon, before crossing the weapon over her left arm, splitting apart to create a shield and sword!

' _What?'_ was the only thing that flashed through my mind. She turned Derf into a sword and shield! How was that possible?!

" **Aegis of Light!** " She shouted, forming barrier of light between us and the golem. Like with her other artifact's, her clothing transformed, but this time into heavy armor. Light surrounded her, taking the form of what I only could guess was thick plate that was combination of royal blue, bright gold, and shining silver. That is, when I could look at her at all. Even after transformation ended, her armor never ceased emitting shining light from the shoulder's and her helmet.

"Louise, get out of here! Get help!" She shouted, her shield suddenly glowing with light, tossing it off her arm. The glowing disk bounced of the golem's arms, before hitting the mage on the head, causing her and the golem to stumble back. I took as ordered, but paused.

' _She's my familiar! I shouldn't abandon her!,'_ I stopped. What type of mage, let alone noble, would abandon her familiar to fight alone? Against a golem and it's master, no less.

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P.O.V. Isabella

"You'll pay for that," the mage on top of the massive creature of earth and stone (and a few tree's. What did she do, turn a hill into this thing?). She was currently rubbing her head from where **Avenger's Shield** had smacked her in the face. Unfortunately, the attack failed to remove the hood that covered her face, and I doubt she would fall for the same trick twice. She was a thief. A bold one at that, to make a hyst with a whatever that was, during a competition, with the princess present. Ok, maybe she wasn't as smart as I was giving her credit for. Or maybe she was just that overconfident. Or maybe like Roman, a thief with an extremely non stealthy weapon.

"I doubt it," I taunt. The less time this thing was swinging it's boulder sized fists around, the better. I may have blocked one attack, but tanking them all without some type of defense was going to either hurt, or get me killed. Maybe something a little more built toward dodging, not tanking, would have been a better choice. But what's done is done. I'll just have to make the most out of what I got.

' _Do we have a plan for this, partner?'_ Derf asked. The blade had remained quiet for most of the day, likely annoyed that I didn't use him for the little talent show. However, he didn't seem all that freaked out by the fact I had split him into a sword and shield.

' _Outlast it until Louise gets here with backup,'_ I projected back the blade. I brought the shield up to block another overhand smash from the massive construct, channeling light into it right before impact. **Shield of the Righteous** , empowered by my **Avenger's Shield** took the hit with ease. Using the Light was far different from using Xal'alath. While using the dark weapon, I had a sense of dread. With Truthguard, I felt warm. Like, I don't know, being wrapped in a warm and fuzzy blanket, during a snowstorm, while drinking homemade hot chocolate. The boulder sized fist kept pushing though.

" **Divine Steed!** " Under my body, a horse made of solid light took form, charging forward from a few brief seconds, allowing me to land a few slashes on my opponent's legs. This, combined with the massive force of resistance that was no longer there, nearly sent the construct toppling. Yeah, I really should have gone for something different. My enemy was stronger, larger, and heavier, than I was. However, I had the edge in terms of mobility and speed. Well, I would, if I hadn't chosen an artifact from one of the least mobile classes in the game.

' _Don't look now, partener, but you're going to have to wait a bit more for those reinforcements,'_ Derf injected into my head. I needed to focus on the fight. What did he mean by, … oh. Louise, what are you doing? Louise had returned. Without anyone. Pointing her wand at the summoner of the construct. And she currently had the mage's attention. What was she doing? Does she have a death wish? And she's chanting. She actually means to try and bring it down?! I charged forward.

' _Damnit, this is going to be close!'_ I mentally snarl. Out of all the things she could have done, she challenges it head on! I was going to have to give her talk about how much of a lie honor was, wasn't I. Louise didn't notice the fist speeding towards her, but I certainly did. I arrived just in time, shield meeting rock. Without any type of defensive cooldown up. My muscles (and arm), almost screamed in pain on impact.

" **Ardent Defender** ," I nearly spat. Light formed another barrier, softening continued strength of the blow several degrees. As I had expected, catching a direct hit hurt. A lot! Louise and I were going to have a little talk about combat etiquette after this. If that hit her, she would have died!

" **Fireball!** " Louise finished her spell. Apparently, Truthguard wasn't one of the artifacts that took away too much of Louise's magic, because there was no fire, which meant a miss on the explosion. I gritted my teeth, before noticing the construct's arm suddenly cracked at the elbow, just as it was winding up another punch. The crack was followed by a massive explosion, causing the hand to fall off (seeing as elbow was blown to pieces, it wasn't too surprising), along with cracks in the tower wall from the blast. I could have sworn the rider was trying to recreate the missing limb.

"Well, that is one way to call in the cavalry," I mutter. An explosion of that size was impossible to ignore, even with a festival. I still wasn't going to let it go that she failed to listen, and put herself directly into harm's way. If she was going to do something like that again (something told me I wasn't going to be able to convince me to simply up and leave easily), she was going to stay behind me. I heard a sudden roar, signalling the arrival of Tabitha (the bluenette) and her blue dragon. It looks like the scales have tipped in our favor.

"Golem!" the thief suddenly shouted. The construct (apparently a golem), threw a punch at the tower itself! The outer wall gave way to the powerful blow, the mage thief slipping inside for a moment, returning with some type of box. I have no idea what was so important about a simple box, but the fact that all of this was because of a simple box infuriated me. I got punched by that thing because she wanted to steal a box! That's it. She's going down.

" **Judgement!** " I snarl, a small hammer of light impacting the golem's leg to hardly any effect. What? … Oh right. My anger and emotions were getting the best of me. Vengeance is a no. The Light itself was a living force. If it didn't like what you were doing, it let you knew. Like Arthas. Damnit, it was going to get away at this point, and there wasn't much I could do about it.

' _Derf, do you think I can get you to turn into something else?'_ I thought in desperation. I needed a ranged option.

' _Not like this, partner. I need to be back to normal first,'_ he responded. That's going to take too long! But I guess I don't have a choice though. I placed the sword part of Derf into the shield (which doubled as a sheath for the blade), watching the glow fade out of my body, Derf returning to normal. I switched him into my left hand in a reverse grip. He didn't stay a blade for long though, curving and twisting, forming one half of a bow as the other sprouted from his hilt. Thas'dorah, Legacy of the Windrunners. A bow famed for it's accuracy. I just hope it's enough. I didn't even wait for my clothes to fully change. I needed to attack before she was out of even the range of this mighty bow.

I drew back an arrow and fired. Again. And again. However, she was to far gone at this point. I could do nothing. Damnit! Just damnit! That massive golem was to fast to catch on foot, if only because of it's size. I fail to see how today was going to get any worse.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Courtyard*

P.O.V. Isabella

Well, me tempting fate certainly didn't bring any repercussions. Yet. The princess was evacuated safe and sound, nobody was killed or injured, the whole nine yards. And apparently, the thief was Fouquet herself. Bagging her would have been a good thing, to. A master thief and criminal brought down would have brought in plenty of money. Shame she hide her face. It was most certainly smart, but it was also aggravating to not know. After all, she could be among use right now! Nobody saw her face, and no one would suspect somebody to return to the scene of a crime they committed.

' _Calm yourself Isabella. Getting mad gets you nowhere,'_ I had been repeating this mentally for quite some time. Nobody was allowed to return to their rooms yet, due to the ongoing investigation. Which meant all the students had were gathered in the courtyard for the meantime. It also meant I couldn't vent. Or tell Louise exactly what she did wrong, without causing embarrassment (as annoyed as I was, being angry, yelling, or embarrassing Louise was not going to solve the problem at hand).

"To control such a large golem, there's no doubt that she was a Triangle-Class mage," Louise said on my left.

"Don't care. The first opportunity I get, I'm to chase her down," my temper evident. Louise looked at me shocked.

"And if I order you not to?" The question hung in the air. I had to resist the urge to smirk.

"You and I both know that ordering me not to do something simply isn't going to work," I said. Louise let out a sigh of defeat. In

"I suppose you're right. Still. I'm worried about the princess," Louise said. I paused. Nothing happened to the princess. She was safely out of harm's way and heading back to the palace mere minutes after the explosion. Her security detail was top notch, to say the least.

"What do you mean? She was safely out of harm's way," I said. Based on the look Louise gave me, I was clearly missing some piece of information.

"I've been hearing bad rumors about the Palace lately," she started.

"And you think some people are going to blame her simply because of bad luck," I finish for her, earning a nod from Louise.

"People like that are slime," I spit, causing Louise to jump slightly, clearly not used to such behavior. "All the more reason to bring Fouquet down. End the rumor milling before it even begins." That seemed to calm Louise just a little.

"Together?" she asked hesitantly. Great. I was going to be a hypocrite if I told her she couldn't come along. She even had more at stake than I did. After all, people are trying to bring down her best friend, the princess, with political backstabbing and lies. It wouldn't be right to have Louise stay on the sidelines during all this. Safe, yes, and safety was part of my job. But, if I did have the right to disobey her orders, then she could do the same to mine. Better to be able keep an eye on Louise, then have her running around without protection.

"Sure," I shrug.

"You can return to your rooms," the old principle finally said. I grin. It was about time.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Isabella

"So you don't want me fight?" Louise asked, clearly annoyed. I should have worded what I was saying slightly better than how I did.

"Not exactly. If I told you to run, I would want you to run," I said as she was about to interrupt "Let me finish. If you do not decide to do that however, that is fine. Just get my attention, or Derf's, and stay behind me."

"And why is that? What type of mage would I be if I left my familiar to die?" She asked. I let out a sigh.

"Just because you're a mage, Louise, doesn't mean you're invincible. If nothing else, like all the other students, you are squishy. One stray arrow, one misaimed spell, one fist from a massive golem, and you're down for the count," I make a squishing sound to drive the point home.

"So you're saying I can't fight," Louise crossed her arms in a huff. Not very lady like, but her standard seemed to drop when angry.

"I'm not saying that at all, Louise. What I'm saying is, you don't use armor, and don't know how. You can't take the same hits I can, and keep on going. You are a mage, and as far as I can tell, getting up close isn't your thing, and it certainly isn't that smart to get in front of the person who can. It's simply asking for trouble," I stated.

"Then why do you do so?" She snapped back.

"Louise, you gave me these runes," I raise my left hand to drive home the point, "You gave me these runes when you made me your familiar. They let me protect you in way's and with weapon's, that I could never imagine. Because you, and your magic, need to be protected in some way, I literally have an armory of some of the most powerful weapons in existence at my beck and call. Have you asked yourself why that is?" Louise paused.

"No. I haven't, and I don't what it has to do with anything," she snapped.

"Whatever makes these runes work, saw fit to not only let me us any weapon I touch, but also let's me turn other weapons into powerful artifacts, all of which have immense strength and are very dangerous. And you haven't questioned why, out all the familiar's that have ever existed, I'm the only known one with this type of power?" Louise paused as I spoke.

"Why do you think?" she finally asked. Ouch. She's kind of got me on that one. Payback for last night's question from me, I guess.

"I think it's because you are so powerful, you are a target that needs the ultimate line of defense. You have power so great, it needs an equally powerful protector. You need more than just a simple manifestation of your magic, like a flaming salamander, or a frog. You need a shield, much rather than a simple animal," I grinned slightly.

"I think you're praising me far too much," Louise huffed, "I understand that explosions are dangerous, but without you taking away part of my magic, I'm still worthless."

"Blasting the arm off a golem isn't worthless," I snap back. "Stop being so hard on yourself, or I'll find a way to introduce you to my cousin."

"What would she do, berate me to death," she huffed. That would be my grandfather if he was in a bad mood. He had no patience for whining.

"No, she would hug you to death squealing about how cute you are," I said, causing Louise's face to turn an interesting shade of red. "Either way, I'm going to vent for a bit. Being angry isn't exactly good for chasing down criminals, and I would much rather have my wits about me."

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P.O.V. Louise

Why was I blushing?! She said her cousin would find me cute, not her. Why did that even matter?!

"So Linth will be joining us tonight?" Something came out of Isabell's device. So that's what she meant by venting. I don't think fighting things in a one of these games was the best way to calm someone down, but I might as well watch.

"Of course," my familiar grinned. There was a pause.

"Damn, Linth, you sound pissed," Another voice came from the device. It didn't sound like any of the one's I was familiar with, either (her friend's vocal habits not standing).

"Put a sock in it, Hades," she snapped, causing me to jump back. If someone's voice could kill, this Hades person would be a nothing but bones. Some type of rivalry?

"Linthice, just make sure to aim your rage at the boss. You do more dsp when you do that," a calmer voice came through the mic. Grim. The guild leader (whatever that meant) of the group Isabella belonged too.

"I'm a dk, Grim. Rage is a warrior thing," she sighed in response. Was it a joke? If it was, I certainly wasn't getting it, and it sounded like my familiar had heard it before.

"You're kidding, right? I remember the last time you showed up to raid in a fowl mood. You crushed most of the group's dps. Undergeared, I should add," Another voice. It sounded like Ryk, another of the group's older member's (Isabella was actually the group's youngest, but not by much).

"We ready to pull?" This time, it was Syla, one of the healers (the game had tanks, people who defended the group, healers, that kept everyone alive, and damage dealers, that killed the boss before it killed them).

A universal chorus of yes's responded, some type of bar flashing. Around ten seconds later they all attacked some type of creature. I waited for it to defend itself, only for it to die fairly quickly.

' _That wasn't impressive,'_ I thought, before impliedly retracting the thought as a massive creature emerged from a character. Some type of ring appeared around a few player's, causing them to scatter.

"Doomguard!" Grim shouted, the group turning their attention to their new opponent. Under the concentrated attack, it died fairly quickly, but it wasn't the only problem. The things they were killing creating some type of minions. The first was the massive demon. I couldn't tell exactly what the other's where though. One created small creature's, which attacked anyone within reach, but were clearly soft and got picked off quickly. The other's simply either stood in place, doing damage to anyone that stood to close (I'm guessing that was the purpose, because when one did show up, people moved away from it). When it wasn't doing that, it turned into a ball, and flew to somewhere else. The last of the summoner's fell, and I expected the fight to be over.

' _By the Founder! What type of twisted person could imagine that?'_ There was a massive skeleton, of well, something in the center of the room the exploded with force, pulling itself together. The tank's quickly grabbed the monstrosities attention, putting their backs to a pillar.

"Mannoroth's Gaze! Soak! Hellstorm incoming! Spread out! Felseeker! Move out of the way!" Almost like a commander, Grim gave the orders, and the group followed his instructions to the letter. I watched Isabella's character chase down people with Mannoroth's Gaze (another dark circle, but this time, the character's were running away out of control). Stranger still, is lower the bosses health (I'm assuming it's health was the bar opposite of Linthice's own), the more skin it grew.

"Shadowforce incoming!" Shadowforce? What's Shadowforce? Why something new? Suddenly, three beams of dark-purple energy, connecting with a few players, pushing them back. I didn't understand what the point was. Maybe to knock somebody off the edge? As the boss's health dropped lower and lower, Grim gave the strangest of orders.

"Save ring and cooldowns! Wait for my mark!" I paused. I knew what cooldown's were. Each spec had a few based on their roll. Dps usually had one or two major ones, typically two to three minutes of downtime between use. But they did massive damage while up. Tank's had ones that increased health or reduced damage taken. Healers had the most, some of which were extremely specific in use. Why save them though? The more damage done, the faster the fight ends. Right? Another blast from the creature was admitted. It finally had all it's skin back (and was crackling with green lightning as well).

"Time Warp! Pop everything now!" Grim suddenly shouted. Time Warp? Wasn't that a spell that she had shown the maid, Siesta (I actually remembered her name for once). What was so important about the spell that he needed to give an order for it to be used? I blinked. Did everyone just grow? Did that spell effect more than one person? If so, why hold on time it? I understand not using it against the first things, but why not use it early on? Whatever happened the boss thing was amplified tenfold. No soaking gaze's, they left puddles on the ground now. Tank the boss in the center of the platform, there are no more pillars. Meteor's came down with greater force. Felseeker did damage, whether you got caught within or not. Shadowforce hit the whole group, not just three.

' _This is the most dangerous part of the fight,'_ I realised. Everything from the first parts of the fight, bar the additional creature's, where empowered, making them even more of a danger. The last push was intense, the group splitting up or stacking together in what seemed like heartbeats. I began to sweat from just watching. How was this relaxing?! How did Isabell keep calm during this? How did she keep all this straight? At last, the boss finally fell, people congratulating the others on a good kill, or talking about what their bonus rolls were.

"Alright. Let's move on to Archimonde," Grim said, earning cheers from the group. To say that fight wasn't the most chaotic one I saw that night would be a lie.

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And that's a wrap. Sorry about the late update, guys. I've been busy with college, and with finals around the corner, this is likely to be the last post until I finish them. This would have been out sooner, but I had to rewrite the enter fight scene. Why, you may ask? Because I couldn't take using the Fist's of Ursoc seriously in this case. I mean, a bear versus a golem? The chapter feel apart into a total mess, that while I found funny, was completely unnecessary (if I do an Omake series, I will most certainly reuse the idea). So I replaced it with Truthguard. Which meant the whole thing had to be reworked.

Funny thing about Louise's reaction to raiding. It was pretty much mine (it's also how I got into the game myself). Raiding looked like a chaotic mess to me. I had no idea what was doing what, what things caused what abilities, and how they all meshed together. And it also looked like the coolest thing ever.


	8. Elemental Rage

Review answering time!

Boyzilla: Archimonde is a powerhouse in every sense of the term. He killed a Demi-god in single combat, and as far as I recall, did it easily. And yeah, this is quite the problem. Some artifacts are powerful. Really powerful. Like the Scepter of Sargeras, which can open portals easily, and if reinforced, could create enough to rip a world apart. But for every artifact we know the lore powers of, we have at least two that are completely new. So not only for some (like Truthguard), I have to figure out exactly what the power's are. Combine that with the new secret artifact powers (these have no hints to their existence, and so far only one has been discovered), are going to make things quite interesting. However, Isabella is not that in sync with all her artifacts, which makes her weaker.

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Isabella

Poke. Poke. Kirche, take the hint already. I'm not interested in fruit! Especially things that looked like a peeled orange. I did just have breakfast afterall. After another poke, she finally turned around. Thank you! Classes had been slow all day (something that wasn't at all surprising), but I needed to know more about this golem thing. Louise told me the basic theory behind it, but theory can only get one so far. But because of the break in, most of the time the teachers weren't even teaching class.

"You know those fruits are a Germanian specialty," Kirche said, turning back around. Full points for stubbornness (at the least she hadn't attached myself to arm again).

"Not hungry," I mutter, before flopping against the desk in annoyance. Maybe I shouldn't have bothered coming with Louise to class today, who was, by the way, looked just as bored as I was (even though she had a book with her, and my understanding of the written language was spotty at best).

"It's not like we have anything else to do," Kirche said with a slight shrug, "We all get bored when it's study hall all the time." That was actually a good point. The last bit, not the first. Should have brought my laptop. Then again, it's not like I'd have much to do anyway. Open beta for Overwatch was still a few weeks away, and I sure didn't have much else to do. Well, excluding preparing for the hunt. But that was going to be a pain. Taking Fouquet by surprise, yet alone alive, wasn't going to be easy. We are talking about a master thief, after all.

"Well, the whole thief hubbub means no time to hold classes, I'm sure," I had to bite down a groan. As much I didn't like her, sometimes she had a smart head on her shoulders. When she wasn't trying to seduce me, that is. It annoyed me to no end. If only she turned it towards studying, or something productive.

"I hear rumors that Princess Henrietta may have to take responsibility," she finished. I grit my teeth in annoyance. Politics.

"Politics," I snarl, "It's not her fault the thief struck when we were already distracted in the first place. In fact, her presence made things harder, if nothing else." Kirchie blinked.

"What makes you think that?" she asked, a hint of interest in her voice.

"The exhibition. She struck during the exhibition, when our security would be at it's weakest anyway. And to make matters worse, she found out how to shut off whatever spell was used to protect the tower. What was stolen was gone, with or without the presence of the princess," I elaborated. Louise had put her book down.

"You really think that?" she asked. Louise was most certainly loyal, almost to a fault, it seems.

"It's the smart thing to do. I doubt someone could become a master thief on nothing but dumb luck alone," I grin, before frowning. "Which means anyone tracking her down isn't going to have an easy job."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kirche questioned, about to stand up. I'm beginning to think everyone here is book smart, rather than survival or street smart (though I shouldn't be talking to much).

"False trails. Traps. The like. Standard tactics to shake off and discourage pursuers," I grinned. This was, in a way, basic military hit and run. Retreat towards either your allies or towards traps. The key part of guerilla warfare. And wanting someone not to go somewhere. Traps would be a sign you were getting close, especially if she had to store her ill gotten gains. Hopefully, she would have to find a buyer first. If not, well, it was as good as gone.

"And you know this how, exactly?" Louise asked. Oh, right, combat is still the head to head stage here, isn't it. I was going to need to figure out this written language, if only to copy the Art of War. Which was really good.

"Military history. And reading the Art of War a few times certainly helped," my voice was full of glee. History was one of my favorite subjects, especially military. Weapons, strategies, you name it. I blame my grandmother for the fascination.

"You mean, you have a book that's sole purpose is to tell someone how to wage war?" Louise's mouth dropped slightly, somewhat shocked. At this point, shock would have already gone out of my system, but then again, she wasn't me (thankfully).

"Even I find that suspicious, darling," Kirche frowned. Was the darling really at all necessary?

"Yep. Written by Sun Tzu. Arguably one of the greatest strategic minds to ever exist. If you fight by his principles, and your enemy does not, victory is all but assured," I said, getting sceptical looks from the two rivals. "What? He lead the forces of a small city state against its much larger and numerical superior…"

"Miss Valliere!" the door suddenly slammed open, revealing Professor Colbert. Looks like I was going to have to finish that story later. "Miss Tabitha! Come to the Principal's office immediately!" Right, the bluenette had helped to. On the top of that dragon of her's. Which I was growing ever more curious about. I doubted dragon's here where the same as Azeroth's, but I could almost see a glimmer of something in the back of the beast's eyes.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Headmaster's Office*

All of us, including one additional Kirchie (why was she even here?) had all filed into the open office. Professor Colbert, Old Principal Perv (that was his new nickname), his secretary (I never did get her name), another teacher that I was not familiar with, along with five guards in green robes.

"Upon questioning various folk around town, we have gathered information about sighting of a mysterious shadow entering and leaving a deserted shack deep in the woods," the greenette said. That was not a good sign. Either she wasn't as good as we think she is, or someone got really lucky and didn't get caught. Or she didn't want to kill. There was a pretty big gap between a murderer, and a thief. Maybe she didn't want to cross that gap.

"You are sure quick with your job, Miss Longueville," the old man said. So that's her name. Last name, at the least. And what is with the last names, anyway? Colbert, Valliere, Zerbst, and know Longueville. All of them were fancy sounding. Excluding the mysterious Tabitha, who went by that name and it alone.

"From these testimonies, I attempted to sketch it out," she said, pulling out a scroll, before handing it to the old perv. He took the scroll, pulling it open, before showing it to us. All of us took a step forward. The sketch was not only of pretty good quality, it was accurate was well.

"This is Fouquet! There's no doubt about it!" Louise nearly shouted, justifiably so. I nodded. That was Fouquet alright. But if she was visiting an abandoned shack in the middle of the woods, why did she still have her hood? Fouquet has to be careful, or paranoid. Or both. It was that, or something was up.

"Yeah, that's her alright," I nod. Even Tabitha seemed to think so, giving a small nod.

"Let's report this to the Palace immediately. We can ask Royal Guards to send men there," was the response from Colbert. The man was clearly sensible. It was the safest option by far. But I'm betting politics will prevent us from getting any such aid.

"If we drag our heels that much, Fouquet will catch onto us," the old man said. What is it with the old pervy men being so wise? The statement was true. Wait too long, and she was bound to move anyway, and was likely keeping as close of eye on things as possible. "We must get back the Staff of Destruction back with our own hands, to regain the Institute's honor that was tarnished by that thief!" Wait, what? Staff of Destruction? Well, that just made everything even more difficult and dangerous.

"Raise your staff, if you are up for the challenge!" he continued. This officially had just gotten dangerous. When somebody has something, I don't know, called the Staff of Destruction, you weren't going to fight it! Much to my not surprise, nobody raised their hand or staff. Shocker.

"Are there no nobles that want to raise their fame by capturing Fouquet?" he asked looking around the room. Then I felt something from Louise. Oh no. Don't you dare, Louise. This is more dangerous than we originally anticipated. And she just raised her wand.

"I'll go!" She raised her wand high and proud.

"We'll go," I corrected, crossing my arms. No way I was letting her do this on her own. Almost everyone looked at her in shock. The zero having more bravery than the adults would have that effect.

"I will go as well," Kirche suddenly raised her wand. If this was because of their little rivalry, I wasn't going to be happy. Tabitha quickly raised her staff without uttering a single word. Having eyes in the sky would be good.

The old man let out a sigh, likely that of resignation. "I will leave it to the four of you, then."

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P.O.V. Louise

Tabitha was a knight! I couldn't believe it! It was almost as surprising as both her and Kirche volunteering. No doubt trying to outdo me, no doubt. However, my familiar was again lost in thought. Something she had been in sense Professor Colbert said almost said something about having a particular rune.

"So what do you think this is?" I ask her. Instead of her responding, Tabitha did instead.

"Trap," the knight muttered. I blinked.

' _What exactly did she mean by that?'_ I thought, as I saw Isabell nod out the corner of my eye.

"Good. So I'm not the only one thinking that," she said, leaning back. She thought this was a trap? Why?

"What makes you think that?" Zerbst asked. What does she think she's doing, taking the words out of my mouth. I shoot her a death glare, only for her to ignore it.

"Lot's of little things. How she leaves on her hood, despite having no reason to suspect being watched. The place she's using just so happens to be deep in the woods in the middle of nowhere," my familiar let out a huff.

"Careful," Tabitha responded. What's with all the one word answers?

"Either that or paranoid. Doesn't really matter. Prepare for the worst but hope for the best," she said as she leaned back. What was going on inside her head?

"So you have some type of plan?" this time the question came from Miss Longueville.

"I have a few idea's, yes," my familiar looked up, still clearly thinking.

"You using the sword again?" I ask. So far, the flaming blade had proven to be quite powerful. She raised her eyebrow.

"Felo'melorn? Yeah, no, that's not a good idea. I mean, it could be possible to melt down the golem, but I doubt even it has enough power to turn melt such a massive chunk of rock. Even if the blade did, it would take far too long. And fighting a lava golem does not sound fun," she huffed, as Kirche and Tabitha looked at us in confusion (well, Tabitha raised an eyebrow, which was likely her equivalent).

"Felo'melorn? What's that?" Kirche asked. I did not just revealed that in front of her. Then again, she was there for the whole of the Xal'alath incident, so it's not like she knew nothing. Isabell let out a sigh.

"In your terms, the best way to describe Felo'melorn is a sword-wand. A very powerful one at that," she said. The Zerbst didn't seem to buy it, staring at her intently, so my familiar continued. "If you really want to get technical, it's a Sin'dorei runeblade, so the basic principle is the same. The blade itself is more than ten thousand years old, and is imbued with immense power over fire. Considering it was used by family that went by the name Sunstrider, it's quite the fitting blade."

"And why haven't I heard of such a thing before?" Kirche crossed her arms. Normally, I would have asked the same question, but she already ran every single one of these artifact weapon's past me, and I hadn't heard of any of them (not that it was much of a surprise).

"You heard of Xal'alath before?" my familiar responded in kind.

"No. What does that have to do with it?" the big chested girl's annoyance was clear. I had to resist the urge to smirk. It's nice to see her get some trouble after all the trouble she caused me.

"Elsewhere," was Tabitha's response. Isabella looked at the girl twice, and I was somewhat shocked. She'd already put everything together. How?

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kirche pouted.

"Xal'alath and Felo'melorn exist, just not here. None of weapon's I don't have on me do. I don't know if I'm summoning them, duplicating them, or doing some crazy transmutation, but I can bring thirty-six different weapons into existence. With Derf as the focus, of course," she tapped the sword's hilt lightly. The blade had been surprisingly quiet throughout this exchange.

"The other two?" Tabitha questioned, the first time the girl actually spoke more than a single word.

"Truthguard and Thas'dorah . Truthguard is more, well, defensive, than most of the others," Isabell rubbed the back of her head. "Thas'dorah is another Sin'dorei weapon. It's said that even someone who has never used a bow before would become an instant marksmen. And a marksman into death itself." She seemed to pause at that.

"As impressive as that sounds, it does no good against a golem," Kirche stated the obvious. Did she not think we knew this already?

"Of course not. That's why we need a plan," Isabell paused once more, looking upwards at Tabitha's familiar. "And having eyes in the sky is a good place to start."

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P.O.V. Isabella

The plan was simple. I go in first, followed by Tabitha, who was followed by Kirchie. Louise would hang back, and if the golem showed up she would blast it, if need be. Miss Longueville would hang back with the cart, while the blue dragon would be a birds eye view, hopely finding whatever Louise did miss (which was a possibility). Even though the house looked abandoned (I even took a look through the window, revealing nobody inside), I still had the sinking suspicion that this was a trap. Even though Tabitha's magic revealed no magical ones, anyway. Maybe Fouquet was watching us from the forest?

Still, this did prove to be the first time I was ever in a position to kick in a door. To say I did it with a little bit too much glee would be an understatement. The door feel gave in, falling the floor with a crashing, throwing up dust. I groan, swiping at the air.

"There's so much dust. It's like nobody's been here for ages," I cough. If this wasn't some type of trap, then I don't know what was.

"Either way, we should do a once-over to see if we can find anything," Kirche said, looking around the small abandoned shack. I placed my hand on a table near the center of the room and sneezed, sending up another cloud dust. I was going to be a mess by the end of this. Stupid allergies.

"If this place has this much dust, it's safe to say," I began.

"Staff of Destruction," Tabitha interrupted. What? The? Hell? Why didn't Fouquet have the thing? Was it bait? Why would she use something like that was bait? It would be far more useful in her possession. And as if on cue, Tabitha's dragon let out a roar as the earth began to rumble, the massive golem pulling itself out of the ground. Yep. It's a trap. Louise screamed as the golem ripped off the roof of the small shack.

"Everyone, out. Now," I quickly draw Derf as the two launched spells at the target, to no effect.

" **Fireball!** " Louise shooted, sending another explosion at the target. The spell went wide. To wide, but resulting shock wave caused the golem to stumble.

"Alright everyone. Get on the dragon and get out of here," I order. By this point, the golem had recovered.

"I'm not going to abandon you!" Louise shouted. Sorry, Louise, but I'm not giving you choice in the matter. It's too dangerous.

"Relax. I'll be fine," I said calmly, before quite literally tossing her onto the dragon. "Go! I have everything under control!" Tabitha nodded as the dragon took off. Now what was I going to use. Truthguard, Felo'melorn, Xal'alath, and Thas'dorah were out. I felt the earth rumble as storm clouds started to rapidly form above me. I felt wind swirled around me. I felt the droplets of water and the latent sparks of flame around me.

"Doomhammer!" I roar, raising Derf to the sky. A bolt of lightning from the storm above struck the blade, energy coursing through it as the blade shown with light. To the untrained eye, the hammer did not look like much, grey surface covered in glowing lightning. The head of a wolf was carved into the sides of the hammer, with a very simple handle. The lightning coursed through me as well, washing over my body like a wave. The crackling energy linked together, covering me head to toe in chainmail armor. I held out my left hand as earth and flame erupted from the ground, twisting to form a molten copy of the weapon I now wielded.

"Alright then. Let's dance," I grin. With the Doomhammer, I could tell the golem wasn't going to listen to what I would try to tell it. Winds raged and howled behind me. And who was I to deny them? With that, I shot forward like a rocket, the runes enhanced by the elemental gale at my back. I swung the twin hammers at the golem's leg, tearing straight through, my momentum keeping me going, landing behind it. Other whirlwind appeared behind me, and I used it as a springboard, this time launching myself toward the golem's arm. The limb turned into nothing more than rumble under the elemental infused onslaught, the wind speeding up my attacks.

' _Two down, two to go,'_ I thought, before noticing that both the arm and leg had started to reform. I huff. ' _Even the gentlest of rains can wear down a mountain. But can I?'_ The golem used that moment to launch a counter attack, swinging it's undamaged fist at me. The attack was slow, compounded by the fact the it was still missing an arm. I would normally dodge the clumsy attack, but I had a better idea. Instead of dodging, why not use it as a springpost? I focused on the air beneath me, and the second before impact, I had it launch me upwards, landing lightly on the golem's fist. Using even more wind to speed me forward, I closed in on what looked like the golem's head. Or to be more precise, it's eyes. It's other arm was in no shape to stop me, as flames licked around the molten duplicate of the Doomhammer.

" **Lava Lash!** " I dragged the superheated hammer across the golem's face. The molten gash caught it off guard, if that was possible. Winds carried me to the ground without command. As far as I could tell, I think I blinded the thing. But it was only a temporary advantage, seeing as the golem could repair itself. I needed to make the most of it.

" **Ascendance!** " I shouted. I felt the wind itself fuse with my body, my body taking on the appearance of whirlwind. I charged forward, swinging the hammers without the target being in range. Only for the wind and air itself to retain the force of the blows, punching holes into the golem. The winds howled around me as I closed distance.

"Storms! Lend me your strength!" I shouted, the clouds above rumbling their approval, lightning crashing down into my twin hammer's. " **Stormstrike!** " The resulting flash of light was blinding, followed by the loud crash of thunder. While the golem was made of rock and stone, it wasn't safe from the force of both lightning infused hammers. Nor was I. The hair's on the stood up on end, and smelled like they were slightly burnt at that. But the golem was knocked back, missing a significant portion of it's body. But once again, it was already starting to recover. Damn! What was it going to take to bring this thing down?

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P.O.V. Louise

I almost shout at Isabella to get on the dragon as Tabitha ordered the it to take off. What did she think she was doing? I wasn't going to abandon her against that! By that point, I didn't have much choice. I paused, looking up, before blinking in shock. Where did this cloud come from? It looked like it had just sprung up out of the middle of nowhere!

"Where did that come from?" Kirche's voice was full of concern. It appeared to fast to be natural. Was it magic? Had Fouquet summoned it to close off our escape? Could she do that? Or was this Isabella? Could she do that? Suddenly a bolt of lightning clipped through the sky, crashing into Isabell. Kirchie gasped in shock.

"Doomhammer!" a faint voice reached my ears on the back of the dragon. Doomhammer? Where had my familiar brought up that weapon before? It was one of her thirty-six weapons, and it certainly wasn't on the list, despite it's name. Something about shaman's? If so, that explained the sudden storm. From what I understood, while shaman's did control earth, wind, water, and fire, they also had power over more natural versions of those elements. Including rain and lightning.

' _But why? How does she think she can win?'_ The answer became apparent quickly. With speed. She was using the wind to throw herself around! It was almost like my mother, but far less disciplined and powerful, but far more wild and unpredictable. The golem's leg came apart after a strike from both from well, what looked like two weapons (Doomhammer was a single weapon? Was she using the elements to make another one?). She then spun around, using the same technique to send herself forward. I could barely follow her movements, which were both fast and feral.

"What is she doing?" Kirche whispered in shock. My familiar appeared to have taken a blow from the golem, only for the dust cloud to part as she speed up it's arm, using the rocky limb like a launch powerful attack. The golem stumbled backwards, clutching it's face, a sizzling gash taking the place of it's eyes. She pressed the advantage, body vanishing into a mighty whirlwind, the golem falling under an onslaught of wind, as what looked like multiple air bullet spell's made contact. The clouds above suddenly began to rumble.

" **Stormstrike!** " The shout from the ground was faint, but audible. Not so much as the crash of the twin bolt's of lightning that leapt from the dark clouds. The bright flash and powerful crack of lightning was almost like a scream of rage. But the golem still didn't go down, though it was crippled. I needed to do something!

"Let me borrow that!" I shouted, ripping the Staff of Destruction out of Kirchie's hands. She didn't even have time to respond as I jumped off, Tabitha using a wind spell to catch me in my fall. Isabella quickly noticed, with a look of shock on her face. As I landed on the ground, I swung the staff. And nothing. What? Why wasn't this working?

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P.O.V. Isabella

You have got to be kidding me! On two accounts! The first of which was the fact Louise jumped off a moving dragon to come try and save me (let it be said that loyalty isn't dead)! The second was the Staff of Destruction! It wasn't a staff at all (though now the name made sense). It was a rocket launcher! Not just any either. A Vietnam war era rocket launcher, and from the looks of it, a M72 LAW. An anti-tank weapon. Well, it was about to become an anti-golem weapon. Like hell I was going to let that thing recover anymore.

"Louise! That isn't a staff!" I shout, using the wind to push me forward. Every second mattered at this point. The golem was going to get back up! I dropped Derf-Doomhammer, which caused the duplicate to fade as I grabbed the weapon out of Louise's hands, letting the runes on my hand do their job. I yanked out the pin, undid the cap, pulling out the blast back tube, before finally flipping up the scope. The golem had finally put itself back together, and was now advancing slowly.

"Louise, get down now!" I shouted, before pressing the button. Thankfully, the thing still had it's shot, sending the missile at the golem's head. The sixty six millimeter shell worked as advertised. The explosive force that could take out a tank was more than enough for a golem. Note to self, to take out golem's in one hit, no shot works better than a headshot. I dropped the weapon before tackling Louise, the blast sending rubble everywhere. Thankfully, the golem was far enough away that wasn't so much of an issue. Seeing the golem crumble away was most certainly satisfying. Good riddance.

"Amazing," She muttered, still somewhat in shock. I had to agree. I'd never actually seen one of those fired in person, and sometimes a video simply doesn't cut it.

"Yeah. But that still doesn't explain what M72 is doing here," I said. That was the question of the day, wasn't it. No, question of the year, really. Why was a weapon from my world doing here? Louise stared up at me, confused. But before I could elaborate, I was smothered. By Kirchie. Or more accurately, by her chest. After a few second of fawning, I managed to pull myself out.

"I did not just beat a golem to only be smothered to death," I gasped, taking in much needed air.

"Where is Fouquet?" Tabitha's question brought Kirchie out of her clingy state (I need to thank her later for that). She only had limited range for control, so where was she?

"She's got to be close by," I quickly pull myself up. After all of this, and using the only charge on this damned 'Staff' of Destruction, having her get away would finish this already somewhat bad day. It clicked, however, as Miss Longueville picked up the weapon.

"Good job," the greenette smiled. You have got to be kidding me. How did I not see this sooner?

"Fouquet," I snarl, slowly going towards Doomhammer. Louise and Kirche looked at me like I was mad.

"'Staff of Destruction' describes it well enough," she said, slowly removing her glasses. "It blew my golem into dust, after all." And she was going to turn that weapon on us. I hope she was used to disappointment. The two rival's still looked shocked.

"I must admit, that was quite well played, Fouquet," I compliment, and it wasn't a lie. It was quite the plan. But I still didn't understand exactly why. She bowed slightly, with a smirk. I decided to test her reaction time, quickly turning to grab Derf-Doomhammer.

"Don't move," she snapped, leveling the weapon at us. I could feel Louise freeze up. Alright, let's see if we can get her to talk while she thinks she has an advantage. I mean, she is stealing something called the Staff of Destruction. Maybe it was a commission job?

"Stealing it was well and good," she went on "but I couldn't figure out how to use it. I thought if I brought someone someone from the Institute, I would be able to learn how. But instead, I got student's, rather than instructors. But then again, Miss Gandalfr was able to figure it out, so I guess it worked out just fine." Gandalfr again, eh. No matter.

"And guess what else I found out," I smirk. "Your precious Staff of Destruction only holds one shot!" I grab the handle of Doomhammer, pulling it out the of ground as Fouquet pushed the button in panic. She does next best thing, going for her wand and starting to cast.

" **Wind Shear** ," Fouquet let out a gasp as air suddenly rushed out of her lungs. I dart forward, switching the hammer into reverse grip before hitting her with the weight at the end. She slumped over, quickly losing consciousness. As she fell over, something slipped out of her pocket. I reached down to pick it up. It was my knife. She had stolen my butterfly knife. Then again, I hit her in the stomach with enough force to make her pass out, so I guess I already had my revenge.

"I guess we better tie her up and head back," I rub the back of my head. Today was one hell of a day, and it wasn't over yet. After all, two people had some questions to answer.

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*Tristain Academy of Magic, Headmaster's Office*

P.O.V. Isabella

The trip back was mostly uneventful. Something I was really grateful for. After all, I needed the peace and quiet to think. Why was the Staff of Destruction a M72 LAW? What exactly is Gandalfr? Could I expect a straight answer?

"We have handed Fouquet over to the Palace authorities," Old Osmond began, "and the Staff of Destruction is once again secure in the vault." Not that it needs to be. The thing has only one shot, and it's not like there is two of them. Right?

"You all are the guests of honor for tonight's banquet," he continued. Well, crap, now I was going to have to find a suit. There was no way I was going to wear a dress. I heard Kirche say something, but I wasn't really pay attention. "The Palace thinks very highly of this incident. I'm sure they'll reward the three of you." They better think highly, wait, what was the second part again?

"Three? That means …" Louise said. I didn't really need a reward, but it was nice to know that she cared.

"Unfortunately, since she is not a noblewomen…" the old man closed his eyes, almost some version of regret.

"I don't really care about that. However, there are two question I would like to have answered," crossing my arms. Luise looked back at me in shock. She knew every well what the first question was. But the second. In a way, it was going to involve her. She summoned me, and so far two people have called me Gandalfr. It was important, and was clearly known to some extent, but I had no idea what it meant. The three filed out slowly, Louise last of all, looking at me. I gave her a quick nod, but she still appeared reluctant to leave me. I waited for the door to close before looking at the old man.

"As you likely already know, I am from another world. The Staff of Destruction is a weapon from my world. How did you find it?" I stared straight at the grey haired man.

"I see," he said, rubbing his beard." The Staff of Destruction is a momento from a certain man." I raised my eyebrow. So I wasn't the first to end up here. Curious.

"I believe it's already been thirty years. A man used it to save my life, dress in a peculiar outfit that I had never seen before. That man had suffered terrible wounds. I brought him back to the Institute, and gave him the best of our care, but…" He paused.

"He passed away," I finished. I see. It wasn't going to be that simple. It never was. Then again, he did appear straight out of Vietnam. The war lasted from nineteen-sixty-four to nineteen-seventy-three, and he appeared thirty years ago. But the current year was twenty-sixteen, and the calendar here was nearly identical to the one at home. Even if he was taken in nineteen-seventy-three, adding thirty to it would be twenty-o-three. That gave a time skip of thirteen years.

"In the end, I never found out who he was, or where he came from," he finished solemnly. Part of me was tempted to tell him. But the old man certainly had enough grief, thirty years after the fact. He didn't need to know any more of the details.

"To think such a story is behind the Staff of Destruction," Colbert wiped his face with a small towel. You don't even know the half of it.

"Now to the second question," I looked squarely at Colbert. "What is Gandalfr? You nearly called me that earlier today, and Fouquet outright called me that. So what's up?" The man paled a considerable degree, more sweat appearing on his face.

"Gandalfr is type of familiar that can use any weapon," the man said carefully.

"Which means they have to be human, because animal's can't use weapons," I tested. "And it doesn't explain how I am able transform weapons." Colbert seemed to pale again.

"Ok, that's it. Enough with the bs. I want to know the truth," I snap. I did not get summoned to deal with people who wanted to play the game of dodge the question. This was important!

"Gandalfr is the legendary guardian and familiar of Brimir, the Founder. He was also a void mage," Old Osmond said, voice suddenly serious. I paused. If Gandalfr is the familiar of Brimir, was a void mage, then that meant all Gandalfrs were familiar's of a void mage. Which meant.

"Louise is a void mage," I finish, connecting the dots. I thought back to what I had seen within the Emerald Dream. If she had a fraction of that power. My eyes grew wide. What others would try to do with that power.

"So you understand the gravity of the situation," that wasn't a question. It was a fact. What others could try do with that power, if the fact was known. Louise would find herself in the middle of a massive storm of political maneuvering and manipulation.

"Am I safe in assuming that this doesn't leave this room?" I got two nods in response. I was going to regret this at some point.

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P.O.V. Isabella

I let out huff. I'm pretty sure I just swore to keep the biggest secret to the safety of this world. Wasn't going to stop me from training her up, though. I was simply going to need more careful. And get her to work a bit more on her Scale of the Earthwarder sounds like a good artifact of choice for such an endeavor. But that wasn't important. I was among the guests of honor to a banquet (cough, Party, cough). And I had nothing to wear, either. Well, besides what I had. And that was seriously below par (not that I cared, but if I had to go, I would much rather not be undressed). I didn't even go to prom in high school. This was going to be somewhat over my head. I paused. Where was I going to find a suit on such short notice?

A few minutes later, I had managed to find Siesta.

"So you are the guest of honor, but you don't want to wear your normal clothes, and you don't want to wear a dress," Siesta was surprising cool about this. She smiled slightly. "I think I have just the thing."

And to my surprise, she did. While it was just a butler's uniform (at least, that's what I thought it was), and not exactly a perfect fit, it worked. I did do away with the tie (I hated those with a burning passion), and the outer coat (it was simply to hot to wear that). I also decided to bind my chest, simply for fun (one of the perks of being flat was the fact I could do that so easily).

"Thank you Siesta," I said, stepping out the room I was changing in. Siesta looked up at me, before turning interesting shade of red, as I adjusted the cufflinks. Likely because of the fact I looked like a guy.

"Your welcome," the girl's face was beat red. I'm going to have to pay her back for this at some point.

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P.O.V. Louise

Where was she?! Isabella better not have skipped this! I don't think she would, but her height alone would make her stick out. Or, it should. But I couldn't find her anywhere! I paused, squinting my eyes. Was that her? She did say something about not wearing dresses. But that couldn't be her. The height was the same, and so was the hair. I blink. By the Founder, it is her. I felt a heat rise in my face. There is no way that should be possible. I approached her slowly.

"Isabella?" I questioned.

"Hi, Louise," her voice was the giveaway. It was certainly her. Even though her chest was flatter than normal (flatter than mine, at that), the face, eyes, hair, and voice were exactly the same. I held out my hand. Would she understand that? Thankfully, the answer was. She took it gently.

"May I have this dance, my lady?"

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And that's a wrap. Blame Final's and the Overwatch open beta for the late update. I'm hyped for the release, which is ten days off, and Warcraft movie is next month.

The Doomhammer makes its first, and most certainly, not it's last appearance. And for why? Well, Shaman's should be the most versatile and among the strongest classes in WoW. I mean, they wield the elements, and should be able to do more than just sling spells and weapons around. But enough of that. Next chapter is going to be interesting to say the least. Hopefully, I will see you all next time, and I hope you are all ready for your watch to begin May twenty-fourth.


	9. Speak of the Devil, and he Shall Appear

Review answering time!

Boyzilla: Ey, for Doomhammer. Out of all the worlds chosen for WoD, Garrosh just had to be sent to the one where Blackhand to a level in competence and badassery. Rest in peace, Orgrim Doomhammer, in whatever world you reside. Yeah, that's most certainly coincidental. Albion, is, well, the next major canonical arc, but I have a few things planned before that.

And I feel for you. After all, I finally did figure out how to explain Isabella's tech remaining functional. Which is about to cause what I think is the first event of this nature in the history of Familiar of Zero fanfiction history (key word think).

Apparuerit Diabolo et Loqui: Sorry you feel that way.

Well, let's get on with the show, shall we?

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P.O.V. Louise

I resisted the urge to let out a huff of annoyance. Where was she? My familiar had always shown up for my classes (mostly out a desire to better figure out magic), but at this point, she was going to be late. Finally, the girl burst through the door, and she looked like she had ran all the way here. And if the look on her face was anything to go by, she was not at all happy.

"What's wrong?" I ask, somewhat concerned about her. She was clearly mad at something. But with her, it was never a simple guess.

"I give your fan club points for stubbornness and stubbornness alone," I heard her mutter. Oh, right. That. More than a few boys had wanted me to dance with them before I found Isabell. But instead, I danced with her. Alone, this would be an insult, but one many would overlook. But the fact that I danced with my familiar, who was not only a commoner, but a girl in a suit, was simply one that more than a few did not want to take. And they all seemed to take an idea from Guiche (but clearly paid no attention to the fact that failed). They also seemed to have forgotten whatever reputation her fight with Guiche actually built. So many of them started challenging Isabella to duels. Only to be quite easily beaten down. At first, she didn't seem to mind. Until, as she put it "people were coming out of woodwork over this".

Part of me really didn't mind this. She stated many times that she needed training, and simply hitting a training dummy wasn't going to cut it. Furthermore, I got to see more and more of these powerful artifacts, something that was always nice. But powerful was merely downplaying her strength. None of the student's were truly a challenge, and she grew tired trying to make it one, often times winning in a single attack.

"How many have tried again?" I whisper. Class hadn't started yet. I knew it was more than five or six at this point, over the past two days. And some of these fights were outright just embarrassing. There is no more of a fitting word to describe being beaten by a spell you cast (yes, my familiar actually turned an **Air Hammer** spell against the person casted it).

"No idea. I lost count at around a ten. Not including any psychological fight's," she returned in kind, before looking at the massive, strange device sitting next to the desk. It was certainly quite ugly. Leave it to Professor Colbert to make something like this. For a master of the element most known for it's combat prowess, he sure didn't like using it for it's intended purpose. I wondered why that was, but question was a rude one, so it remained unasked. Speaking of Professor Colbert, he had finally arrived, somehow the last to arrive out of everyone. And as a teacher, no less! He seemed be carrying a lot of supplies though. Something to with the device?

"I wonder what that could be. It looks familiar," I heard her mutter. What did that mean? Another device from her world? No, that was unlikely. She seemed to recognize exactly what the Staff of Destruction was the moment she saw it. If it was truly something from her world, Isabella would recognize it immediately. Due to my thoughts however, I didn't hear anything he said about the device. What did get my attention was when the device started moving. Or more accurately, when parts of the machine started moving. Some type of wheel in the back, that was hard to notice until it started moving, along with, well, something connected to it that collapsed and extended. The moving part attached to wheel was also connected to the box itself. It was strange, but not really impressive. Looking around the room, I wasn't the only one thinking that.

"Sir, as impressive as this is, I think we can all accomplish similar things with our magic," Guiche said, clearly quite pleased with himself. He was somewhat right, to. While I certainly didn't understand (or at the very least I didn't think I didn't), this was something many could do easily. Even my explosion's could cause the thing to move. However, Colbert seemed to be slightly, saddened (maybe), from Guiche's comment. My familiar seemed like she actually understood what was happening.

"It's combustion engine," Isabella declared. Wait, what? She actually knew about this? I looked at her, somewhat shocked, as did everyone else.

"What?" She huffed in annoyance, crossing her arms. "They are fairly common where I'm from. Really common actually." Professor Colbert clearly was happy about that, if his smile was anything to go by.

"So you understand what's going on?" He asked. What was happening, anyway?

"Only the basics, really. The flammable gas goes into the cylinder, get lit up by a spark. The resulting flame creates force, pushing the piston out to turn the wheel, the wheel comes back around, then the cycle repeats," she grinned. I expected something a little more fancy than that.

"I see," Colbert said, rubbing his chin. "How exactly do you know all that?" Isabell shrugged.

"Like I said, combustion engines are common. And more powerful to, at that," she added the last part in pride.

"If that's the case, then may I request your aid making a better one?" His question caused my familiar's eyes to widen in alarm.

"I understand combustion engine's on paper only," she waved her arms frantically, dispelling the notion. "Asking me to help make one is asking for disaster." Colbert frowned, clearly not liking the answer.

"Sorry, but I'm not qualified for that sort of thing, somebody would get hurt," she apologized, rubbing the back of her head. "Though I do have a friend who could help. He likes making things, and is somewhat of an inventor himself. Shame he isn't … Does anyone else hear screaming?" The sudden pause and resulting silence did bring some type of noise to my ear, followed by a loud thump. Isabella quickly went to the window, a look of shock growing on her face.

"Look's like there is some truth to that phrase after all," I don't know whether her voice reflected her shock, or was merely annoyed.

"What phrase?" Kirchie asked, turning around was my familiar opened the window.

"Speak of the Devil, and he shall appear," she then leaped out the window. But she wasn't talking about about this devil person. She was talking about her friend. Which meant … Her friend. Was the source of the noise?

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P.O.V. Isabella

I lept from the window, forming a cyclone of air beneath me as I fell, thanks to the Fists of the Heavens. What was Leo doing here? Or better yet, how did he get here? Maybe Louise summoning me added another layer to whatever was bringing weapons from my world into this one? I landed on the ground like a feather, touching down with ease.

"Ow." Leo groaned in pain. The dark haired man was build like a twig. Thin, with little muscle, but tall. Nearly a head taller than me and my close to six foot.

"Boo," I grin, causing him to look up in alarm, before grinning himself. I pull Leo backup onto his feet.

"Isabella!" He grinned, taking a look around. "Damn, so you weren't kidding about this other world thing, were you." Leo had always been the sceptic, not taking things at face value, and didn't like the unexplained. Neither did I really, but I certainly took it better than he did.

"Nope. Either way, I need to get back to class," I said. "An interesting discussion about combustion engines." Leo's eye' widened with glee, before narrowing.

"Class? Let me guess, you're kind of an escort or bodyguard to a student, right?" Damn you, Leo, always figuring this out so quickly. Bodyguard was the best way to describe what I should be doing.

"Yeah, Louise," I said, trying not give too much away.

"Louise?" Leo snapped his fingers, "You mean the girl watching you raid and Hades had asked if you were going to 'lez out'?" I frowned.

"Remind me to kill him for that," I mutter, eye's narrowing. Louise was a blushing mess for the rest of the night, clearly embarrassed by the comment.

"If Syla or Tec doesn't kill him first, that is," he grinned. That was a fair point. Syla sometimes just didn't heal someone when they pissed her off. However, very few people knew who was on the list at any given moment. One of the many reasons why I just kept to her good side whenever I could. And well, Tec was Tec. One of the few people I know that was physically my superior. She worked out. A lot. It showed too. "How are we getting there anyway?" I grinned at this. Time to have some fun. I grab hold of him suddenly, placing him under my arm.

"What the?" Leo didn't get the chance to finish his sentence as wind gathered beneath my feet.

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P.O.V. Louise

Professor Colbert desperately tried to restore order after my familiar thought it was smart to jump out the window. I wasn't concerned myself, but almost everyone else panicked. And just when order was restored, the sound of high pitched screaming was heard as Isabell come in through the same window. Holding someone under her arm, who was shouting nothing but nonsense.

' _Not this again,'_ I groan internally. Of course none of us were going to understand him. The only one was going to be my familiar, who had just set the man up on his feet. I had to look again one he was, however. He was somehow taller than Isabell! And a whole lot thinner.

"The look on your face was priceless!" My familiar was laughing, much to his annoyance, if his response was anything to go by. I paused. I had never seen her like this before. Another confirmation of her childish nature at heart. Professor Colbert cleared his throat, drawing the attention of two, who seemed to be content to bicker like children.

"You do know I'm going to have to cast a translation spell," he said. Of course, this was needed. It's not like we couldn't understand a word he was saying.

"Cast away," Isabell grinned, clearly enjoying that look of confusion on the male's face. A brief wave of his staff, and the spell was over.

"Professor Colbert, this is my friend, Leo," she grinned. So that was his name.

"So somebody was talking about me before I arrived. That explains the sneeze. Nothing unflattering I hope," Leo, the black hair man (or young man, anyway), grinned. What was with the sneeze part anyway? Some type of humor?

"Nothing major. Just time time you managed to catch chocolate on fire," my familiar teased. What? She didn't even bring that up until now!

"That was a one time event and you know it," he snapped back as Isabell laughed. Wait, that actually happened?

"She did not, actually," Colbert corrected in a stern voice. "She did say, however, that you are an inventor." At that, Leo puffed out his chest slightly (not that it did much), likely in pride.

"I've made a few things, yes," his voice was filled clearly with pride. He proceeded to look at what my familiar had called a combustion engine.

"Let me guess. She's already told it's basic, not very efficient, and we have stronger ones back home," he said. Basic and inefficient? How power did these things get?

"The last one yes. The first two, no she did not," Colbert replied. Something tells me class was going to be dismissed early today. "As a fellow inventor, can I request your aid in making a better one?"

"Of, course. After all, I've always wanted to build a car engine from scratch."

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"What do you mean we are going to have to sent him back?!" I practically shouted. Professor Colbert let class out early, likely to work with Isabell's friend. His voice was strangely familiar, too. Maybe one of the members of that group?

"Louise, no one summoned him. Leo doesn't need to be here," she said, unsheathing Derf. That was a good point. But how were we going to do that?

"But how?" Was it even possible? Light encased my familiar as Derf's form changed into that of a long staff, the tip made of three purple crystals. Another mage artifact? Based on the robes that shimmered into being, a combination of purple and silver, my guess was correct.

"If it's a push, we pull. If it's a pull, we push," It's official, my familiar is insane. What is she going on about now?

"And if it's isn't any of those things?" I ask. Something told me I wasn't going to like the answer.

"Then we punch through with brute magical force," she grinned as purple spheres of energy formed around her. I knew I wasn't going to like the answer.

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P.O.V. Third Person

"I see. By connecting the piston and release together, it makes it easier to put in multiple pistons and valves," Colbert's eyes twinkled with fascination.

"Which means you can get more power out of it," Leo grinned. While Colbert didn't have enough materials to make a second engine at the moment, it didn't stop Leo from drawing out diagrams of multiple different engines. He sniffed the air. "But I do wonder what that smell is." Colbert blinked. Smell? He must be talking about the Dragon's Blood. The Professor had it for quite some time, so he was used to the odor it gave off.

"That would be the Dragon's Blood," he said, causing Leo to raise an eyebrow. He shouldn't have been that surprised. Most places that had magic had dragons. Well, at least that's how most fantasy stories did it, anyway. But why did he have Dragon's Blood in his laboratory?

"Interesting. Can I take a look at it?" Leo asked. It smelled almost familiar. Maybe a case of mistaken identity, pharpse?

"Sure." Colbert said, handing him the veil of yellow liquid. "Ages ago two dragons never before seen by man appear in the sky with a mighty roar. Shortly after that one of them disappeared from the sky. As for the other it plummeted from the sky. Shortly afterward came across some rumors of blood had come from the dragon at that time. I'm currently trying to replicate it." Leo's eyes narrowed, slowly sniffing the vapors. This wasn't dragon's blood. This was gasoline! Which meant the 'dragons' had to be airplanes! Isabella did mention that a rocket launcher had shown up, but clearly it wasn't limited to a single case.

"This isn't dragon's blood, and those dragon's most certainly not dragons," Leo said, carefully putting down the beaker. Colbert raised his eyebrow. If the liquid wasn't dragon's blood, and the dragons weren't really dragons, then what were they? Something from their world? A device that can fly without magic?

"Then what exactly are they? Something from your world?" Colbert asked, curiosity taking hold. Leo nodded.

"The dragons would have to be airplanes, considering this is gasoline, something that some planes run on," Leo crossed his arms, thinking. What phenomena was this? Stuff from one world appearing in the other, but nothing from this came through to his own. Curious. What was the limit? Based on Colbert's description, it's likely the two dragon's where in fact warplanes. Isabella found a rocket launcher. Was it weapons? No, that isn't it. Leo himself had nothing on him, unlike his best friend, who seemed to have no problem carrying a few knives. Technology? No, he left his phone on his bed.

"But how?" Colbert was now scratching his chin, equally perplexed as his partner. How did something like this exist? How much power did it take? And more importantly, who. Who thought doing such a thing would be a good idea? Leo was the first to come up with somewhat of explanation.

"I know I can't prove it, but I think I have an idea," he said, looking up. The Professor raised his eyebrow, then nodded, singling Leo to go on. "Maybe somebody here casted a spell. A spell that brings weapons or technology from my world to yours. Neither which explains me. Unless, Louise summoning Isabella had effect on the spell. Changing it so that also just brings humans. It also allows more holes to be poked between our two worlds. That does explain how Isabella still has connection through her devices." Colbert nodded. That made sense. It alarmed the older man, however, that Leo had brought up weapons before technology.

"So wars are common where you are from?" Colbert asked hesitantly. Leo's eyes squinted.

"I would like to say less common," Leo said, causing Colbert to let out a sigh of relief. "However, the trade off with technology is that wars end up being far more brutal." Colbert had to bite back a sigh. What Isabella and Leo had shown him had so much potential.

"I'm not saying, 'don't do it'. All I'm saying is be careful with what you make, and be prepared for when things don't go according to plan," Leo said glumly. "I should find Isabella. I hope what I showed you was helpful."

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P.O.V. Third Person

Leo let out a huff. Isabella, along with her pint sized summoner, Louise, were still at work, arcane motes flying around and glowing rune circles surrounding them. She was using Aluneth, Greatstaff of the Magna, the staff used by Aegwynn herself. If she could use that thing, why not pull out the Specter of Sargeras. Oh right, that thing destroyed a planet. With portals. That would explain why she wasn't using it in attempt to get him back home. He might as well tease her about it though.

"You know you could be using the Specter, right!" Leo shouted. Could Isabella even hear him from here? Even if she could, this was likely complex spellwork, which would require focus. Leo grinned though as he got the response he was looking for in a causal middle finger thrown his way.

"Does she do that often?" A voice suddenly asked from next to him. The girl had red hair, dark skin and massive bust size.

"Often causally," Leo simply shrugged. Isabella giving someone the middle finger was not meant to be taken literally. The one person that did, though. He simply tried to pretend that never happened.

"I see," Kirchie muttered, before returning to what she was doing before, staring dreamily at Isabella. Leo shook his head. Isabella already had gotten herself someone to fall for her head over heels. It's a shame his friend could only tell when someone was attracted to anyone else but her.

"You know Isabella doesn't get subtle, right?" Leo questioned. Kirchie raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't do subtle," she almost whinned, causing Leo to wince. If that was the case, than Kirchie was flat out of luck.

"Then I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that means she isn't interested," Leo sighed. "Isabella doesn't pin on physical appearance, like most people. For her, it's based on personality." Kirchie took this new information in with interest. And one her friends was here! She could simply ask what personality she liked!

"And that would be?" Kirchie asked hopefully. Leo sighed.

"I have no idea. She's only dated one person, and she was an odd one," Leo winced as he spoke. Odd did Isabella's ex no justice. Kirchie herself frowned. A girl though? It was close. Closer, anyway.

"Why is that?" She asked, curiosity taking hold. The answer she got was not the one she expected.

"Because more than a few guys don't like having a girlfriend capable of kicking their ass," Leo huffed. Kirchie's eyebrow raised, partially because vulgarness, partially because of the statement itself. But before she could act on the knowledge, someone else came around the corner. The black haired girl let out a squeak, noticing she was interrupting a conversation.

"Hello," Leo grinned, "you are?" Kirchie let out a huff.

"You ask for her name, but not mine," Kirchie was clearly annoyed. Leo rolled his eyes.

"Because I already know who you are," Kirchie's eyes glimmered with hope. "And that isn't exactly a good thing." Her grin turned into a frown.

"Siesta," the girl said shyly. Leo's face grew in comprehension. So this is Siesta.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Leo grinned, "I'm Leo."

"It's a pleasure to meet you to, Leo," the girl said. Kirchie was slightly angered by the development. "But I don't think we've meet."

"We do have a mutual acquaintance in Isabella," Leo stated, before noticing the blush creep onto Siesta face at the mention of his friends name. Wow. Just wow. She already had two girls pinning on her? What are the odds of that? Unless …

"Ok, which one of you two is head over heels because she wore a suit?" He asked. This wasn't the first time someone straight had mistaken Isabella in a suit for a guy. The only homecoming she went was quite the stir. After all, no one could have seen the 'Mr. Steal Your Girl' to be 'Ms. Steal Your Girl'. Out of all the strange occurrences in life, that almost took the cake.

"As much I would have loved to ravish her in that suit, my love for her has been burning strong for some time," Kirchie really didn't care. Leo, on the other hand, just simply shook his head. Which left Siesta, whose face had taken on a brighter shade of red.

"Don't feel bad. You aren't the only straight girl to fall for that," Leo said. "That homecoming dance was an interesting event, and one most don't speak of." Kirche and Siesta's eyes both widened, begging for him to go on, but they were interrupted.

"You done yet?! We got this figured out and we're burning daylight!" Isabella shouted. Leo took a bow.

"I guess that's my que to go. Next time I'm around, remind me to finish the story."

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P.O.V. Louise

I was exhausted. We were trying to punch, as Isabell put it, a hole through a dimensional barrier. And clearly, such a task wasn't easy, even with her instant knowledge of the staff she was using. Though my role was simple, the raw force that could actually create the hole (her logic being that I brought her into this world on power of will alone, so I should have an even easier time since I did it already), everything else wasn't. The pulse and flow of the magic around me was foreign, but strangely comforting.

And after several hours of trial and error, it finally worked. Not for long, but it worked. Leaving one key ingredient missing. The person we needed to send back! That was a fairly simple fix (with my familiar shouting at him to get over here).

"So you got this figured out?" He asked. I helped! Why was he ignoring me?

"We got this figured out," she corrected. His eyebrow raised.

"It takes two of you?" He asked, like it was a joke. My familiar sent him a glare of annoyance.

"If you have an easier way to punch a hole through dimensions, by all means," she responded. Note to self, try not to joke with Isabell when she is tired. If I was in this bad of shape, I can't imagine how bad off she is.

"Relax. I'm just giving you a hard time," he raised his hands defensively. "Both of you." That was unexpected. I was so used to falling beneath other's notice until one of my explosions.

"Ready Louise?" My familiar asked. I nod. I think both of us were going to sleep for a while after this. We took our positions, magic flaring up, glyphs, runes, and circles of energy formed along the ground. Magic flowed from my wand and her staff, meeting between us, forming a glowing disk of energy. Almost like a floating mirror, but instead of reflecting where it was, it reflected where it lead.

"Thank you." Leo grinned, stepping through the portal.

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P.O.V. Third Person

Leo huffed in annoyance. This day. This whole day! It was exactly what he needed! The principle behind it! Normally, he would sleep the effects off. But sleep was for the weak, and there was work to be done.

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And that's a wrap! Hopefully you all enjoyed Leo! Why exactly did I add him? A few reasons, mostly because Isabella's inaptitude at making things, especially machines. Leo is also the leftover of an original plan that goes well back before I even began writing this fic, and it was scrapped for good reason.

Part of Leo is meant to be a warning about technology. Saito kind of, well, has a much more positive view on technology, and it is certainly one Isabella more or less agrees with. Leo is the conflicting view. Don't get me wrong technology is great, but we can also agree that it helped make war far more deadly. Leo is kind of that warning to Colbert. A be careful what you wish for sort of deal. And don't worry, he will be making appearances in the future (but still he is a background character).

But there is one massive reason that I got this out of the way, and it's to test the waters a bit. As some of you have likely noticed, I'm not exactly playing accurately to the formula of a standard FoZ fanfic. Louise is far less Tsundere (mostly because of Isabell intimidating the mindset out of her), Isabella still has connection to friends and family, returning home isn't her permanent endgame, and lastly, having one of her friends show up and returning him home. The last one is the most important. It means she does have a way home. So, how would you all feel about meeting the people that helped make Isabella who she is?

Part of the reason this chapter was mostly in Louise's point of view is because of this. I need the practice. She's going to be in over her head, and more importantly, meeting Isabella's family. This will be between the next chapter and the water spirit arc, because, quite frankly, I have no time otherwise. Well, I wouldn't say time. More like it would create mood whiplash. Take from that what you will.

So, Isabella returning home with Louise in tow. Your thoughts?

I hope you all enjoyed, sorry about the rant, and see you all next time.


	10. The Name's Bond

Review answering time! Don't forget, I do want your feedback on Louise and Isabella visiting Isabella's family!

Xanthos: Thank you!

Boyzilla: Everyone changes in time. But after Isabella's early display, I wouldn't think Louise would be that tsundere. At least, directly to her.

Amerdism: Isabella meeting anyone from Warcraft is unlikely. Well, she will meet one, but who that is will be a surprise. While the weapon's do exist (that will be explained much later down the line), most character's simply don't. Plus Azeroth's Emerald Dream is different from this one, all worlds have them, so meeting Ysera is a no. And it's an idea I've been toying around with, but Isabella's magical leech has quite the range. The only way for them to both run out is if Isabella is using arcana and fel magic while Louise is using void.

Well let's get on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Isabella

In spite of the fact that one of my friends had shown up, life had somewhat returned to normal. Well, as normal as things got around here. But the incident had left me now worried about the how and why. Of course, Leo and I could only theorize. After his departure, there was a stone on the ground. One that seemed all too similar to a hearthstone. After sleeping off all the spellwork I had done, (Louise was exhausted to, and she had done far more work than she had realized) I made a quick call, confirming that Leo also had one. After learning about the second, he believed that they serviced the purpose of dimensional anchors. A likely possibility, but it was one we hadn't had the chance to test yet. With that in mind, he was convinced that the summoning ritual punched a hole that connected two worlds. Something that wasn't easy to mend, allowing all sorts of things to slip through. Including wireless internet and cellphone signals. Considering that Louise and I have been called to the palace, it was likely we weren't going to be able to anytime soon.

Of course, I wasn't expecting to be called myself. Louise, yes. Because of some rule that whatever a familiar does is credited to the master, so long was it wasn't something illegal or a failure. It certainly proved to be an odd rule in regards to the last bit. There were limit's, of course, but most familiars were bound to the will of their master. So the person who made the rule would have to have some type of knowledge of familiar's that were not. Which I read as, knows about void mages. With Louise being the only void mage that I know of. Meaning someone clearly knew that void magic was going to resurface at some point. What the rule really accomplished? I had no idea. But it was something to keep in mind.

"Congratulations, Louise Francoise," The Princess said happily. The news that Louise had become a Chevaliar had arrived by mail merely a day earlier. If I recall correctly, Tabitha had the same title. Catching Fouquet was quite the big deal. The thief had apparently stolen a lot of important heirlooms and artifacts, none of which had been found. I had taken a look around the room. It was fancy, the walls white, with gold forming intricate designs, but was otherwise quite bare.

"I really am unworthy of such an honorary title as Chevalier," Louise bowed, trying to keep humble. We both really knew who had actually captured Fouquet, but the odds of anyone believing the truth was slim to none, we decided to go with the flow. Of course, there were three others, but one was a thief that couldn't be trusted, and the other two seemed to be inclined to be as tight lipped as we were about what had happened.

"You all achieved something that desires that title," the purple haired princess still had a slight smile, "Capturing the thief that had the palace up in arms." She turned to face me. "I thank you as well." I take a slight bow out of respect. Henrietta, was as far as I can tell, a good person, one that I could at the very least respect.

"However," the girl's face suddenly turned serious. "Is it true that you are able to cast magic?" Right, the rumors. Of course, it had let them sit, rather than exactly reveal that I was really borrowing willpower from Louise, and using it as mana. Of course, Louise summoning another noble would be cause for concern, and would speak volumes in it's own way.

"Yes and no," I said, causing the Princess expression to become annoyed. I raised my hands defensively. "I'm not trying to dodge the question, it's just really hard to answer." I let out a sigh.

"When I use magic, I'm actually borrowing the willpower from Louise. So yes, I can use magic, but on my own, I can't," I finish. It was a strange scenario, Louise being a void mage allowing me to use and cast spells by using some of her own power. Which was the true testiment of how much void mages had in reserve. Henrietta nodded, eyebrows furrowed. I wonder why she asked.

"I apologize greatly, but I do have a favor to ask of you two," she said, voice serious. I blinked, somewhat surprised.

"Anything you ask for," Louise bowed. So much for having time to run teleportation and portal experiments. But I wonder what it was? Hopefully something that didn't involve too much politics.

"I would like you two to live in the village for a while," Henrietta said. Wait? What? Nothing that exciting then. But why? She handed a scroll to Louise. "This is a warrant issued by the Palace". A warrant? We were arresting somebody? Wasn't that something better suited for the guard?

"You want us to do some spying in the village?" Louise asked, taking the scroll. That was curious. Alarmingly curious. Her reason being?

"Lately, I often hear rumors of nobles oppressing the peasants. When I ask those in the area, all of them claimed that such a thing would never happen, as nobles were good role models for peasants," Henrietta said solemnly. Yeah, that was not true. Her and Louise were plain good role models as far as I could tell, but the likes of that one Count, not so much.

"However, a certain investigation into Count Mott prevents me from discounting these rumors as such," Henrietta went on. I did a mental cheer in my head. The little prick was finally getting his just desserts.

"Therefore, I would like you to investigate the goings-on in village in secret."

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And as I found out Louise had no talent, or knowledge of being subtle. I've watched enough James Bond movies (with great reluctance, might I add), to know that blinding in was going to be key to this operation. And what is the first thing Louise does? Buy a fancy dress (I bought guy clothes and made another makeshift binder, and certainly enjoyed everyone's expressions as I left).

But back to Louise, who tried to rent a fancy room at an inn (and failed, we had no where near enough money for that). She also then tried to buy a horse. Louise probably wasn't the best choice for this mission. While I no doubts of her determination, she just simply didn't know anything about blending in. And me interfering wasn't going to help. This was a lesson she was going to have to learn on her own. She didn't need those things. She only wanted them.

"We just need more money," Louise snapped her fingers. Yep, she had no idea what she was doing. Which quickly became evident as she entered what was a gambling establishment.

"Louise, no!"

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"Let me go!" Louise flailed in my grip as I dragged her out of the money sink. I may thought the best lessons come from experience, but I was not going to let her spend all our money gambling.

"Sorry, but I'm not letting you throw away what money we do have," my voice betrayed my slight annoyance. Of course, Louise didn't know better. She was sheltered, even more so than myself.

"I could have gotten more," Louise huffed, crossing her arms. Case in point.

"Keyword being could," I stare down at her. "Louise, you are more likely to be struck by a bolt of lightning than win money in that place."

"But we need more," Louise's narrowed her eyes. I let out a huff of annoyance.

"No, you simply want more. You don't need a fancy inn, nor do you need a horse. Just like I don't need my laptop or popcorn," I look down at her. I've gone without those things before. Easily, really. The last part caused Louise to pause.

"Popcorn?" Her face was clearly confused, the sudden use of an unknown word derailing the argument.

"My favorite food. That I haven't had in what, one, two months now?" I ask myself. It's most certainly been a while. But it was something I could go without. Even if I didn't like doing so. Louise seemed to be thinking. Hopefully I got through to her.

"All right, I'll try," she broke eye contact. I pat her hair, earning a flurry of blows that failed the reach my head.

"Tres bien!" Someone said to my right, causing me to turn, much to my dismay.

' _So, this is what it's like to be on drugs,'_ I couldn't help the thought from crossing my mind. What other reaction could there be to seeing a muscular man in a two piece, giant red lips, along with a mustache and a short beard.

"Such a beautiful face," the man went on, clearly not noticing my face of pure shock as he swayed back and forth. "From the looks of it, you seem to be in some sort of trouble." Louise's face was similar to my own, an indication that this was not common.

"I am Scarron. I run a tavern just up ahead!" The man said, breaking into a dance routine. "Would you like me to furnish you two in one of our rooms?" The man was dangerously close to my face, nearly earning him a punch to the nose. Personal space? Has he heard of that? He backed off, allowing me to consider. It was getting late, and I was not a fan of sleeping on the streets.

"How much for a room?" I ask. Money, assuming the room was cheap enough, was no question.

"No money." I paused. Ok? "On one condition."

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He wanted us to work for him. That in itself wasn't that bad, actually. Well for me anyway. Thanks to my binded chest and short hair, I once again passed off as a guy, and would mostly help in the kitchen. Louise, however, would work with the others. Which involved some type of maid uniform. I would also kill to stay out of that thing.

"Understood my faires?" Scarron said as I watched from the kitchen, my post for the foreseeable future. Scarron was quite the character. But he didn't seem to be a bad person.

"Yes, Manager Scarron!" The girls said happily. Probably the only reason I agreed to this was because of the happy girls. If they were happy, it was because they weren't abused on the job, meaning it was safe for Louise. Didn't stop me bringing a sheathed Derf with me to the kitchen, just as a precaution.

"Not like that," Scarron's legs flailed in comedic manor. "When we are in the shoppe, I've told you to call me 'Mi Mademoiselle'!" I swear I'm in an alternate version of France.

"Yes, Mi Mademoiselle!" The girls cheered. Yeah, that wasn't creepy at all.

"Now, good news to all fairies!" The man went on, "We have someone new joining us here at the Enchanting Fairy Tavern today! Louise, come on in!" Louise was clearly not happy about the matter and it showed.

"I'm going to have to sleep with one eye open tonight, aren't I?" I mutter to myself.

"A useful skill, but that's not going to clean dishes," a black haired girl said, turning to face me, somewhat annoyed.

"Coming," I raised my hands defensively, making my way over to the sink, throwing on an apron to keep the water off.

"You have a very cute little sister," she said, attempting to make small talk. Yeah, that was a lie I had come up with on the fly. It was either that, or lovers, and I don't think Louise would have liked the latter. Of course, she wasn't fond of anything at the moment. I shrug, staying in the act, sensing some type of verbal trap.

"If you say so," I said as I grabbed another dish. She frowned slightly.

"Not much for talking, are you?" I give another shrug, earning a look of annoyance. "I'm Jessica. You are… ?"

"James," I said. The name was at the least somewhat common, and it fit the job I was doing. James and Louise, nothing important and nothing special. Even though I wished I could do something about Louise's bright pink hair. She's the only person I've seen with that hair color, making it stick out.

"James? That's pretty common," Jessica said, disappointed. I let out a small chuckle.

"What were you expecting? Something exotic?" I joke. Exotic was exciting. Exotic was memorable. And that is what I didn't want to be. She was the one that shrugged this time.

"Well it's nice to meet you James. Ask me if there is anything you want to know about this place," she smiled.

"Nice to meet you to."

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P.O.V. Louise

"Why do I, a daughter of a Duke, have to deal with such…" I bite down on my tongue to prevent me from screaming in rage. This shouldn't be happening!

"It builds character," my familiar said, making no attempt at calming me down.

"What does that even mean?!" I snap back. I know I told her I would try, but this is simply too much!

"Louise, it was your first night. At least you didn't do what I did the first time I confronted a drunk idiot," She said, pulling off her shirt, to reveal a some type of bandage that covered her back and chest.

"What was that?" I question, anger slowly ebbing away. I handled myself better than her? I threw a glass of wine into that man's face. How did I handle it better?

"Long story short, he is not having kids," she said. Wait… What? If that was true, throwing wine was a much, much better response. My familiar grabbed her shirt, before undoing the bandage, quickly putting it on as the bandage came off. "I am not wearing that to sleep tonight."

"What is that anyway?" I question, curiosity taking over. The strange bandage did not cover a wound, that was certain. So why was she using it?

"I'm using it to keep my chest hidden," Isabell said simply, gathering up the bandage before putting it on the nightstand. So that explains how she did that at the banquet. "One of the perks at being flat, I guess." I balk. She considered being flat a blessing?

"What?" I nearly shreak. My familiar think's being flat chested is a good thing?

"What? It makes it really easy to bind, and a lot less painful," she grinned. My familiar was just to weird. She grabbed what seemed to be a spare pair of sheets and a pillow from the closet (not like this room was already one).

"What are you doing?" I ask, as my familiar stifles a yawn.

"Louise. I'm tired. You're tired. It's time to get some shut eye. Rest will do us both good," my familiar said mid yawn. She laid the stuff on the ground, before turning out the light. "Goodnight Louise." She shot underneath the covers of the makeshift bed, before emitting a light, gentle snoring. I stay awake, however. For her, this was no big deal. Why? Did she really think that this would work? Or maybe she was waiting for the noble to come to us? A sudden noise drew my attention, and I finally noticed three bats in the rafters. The bats swarmed me causing me to let out a quiet scream.

The bat's retreated in freight, in a mixture of the sudden noise and my flailing. The bats returned the there resting place as I stepped out of bed, shaken. Nasty things. Why did they have to be here! Isabell gave no heed, continuing to snore lightly. After the bats, her breathing was strangely relaxing. And she did promise to protect me. Certainly the bats wouldn't return if I was close to her. I kept repeating those thoughts as I curled up at her side.

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P.O.V. Isabella

I don't think Louise knew that I knew she had joined my last night, and it wasn't something I was going to bring up. She was clearly embarrassed enough without me knowing, so I was content to keep it quiet. It didn't stop me from finding the source of her distress, however. I carefully and swiftly removed the bats from the room. Damn things were a health hazard. Even though I had no idea how diseases were treated here. Or how I haven't gotten sick yet. Or anyone around me has gotten sick. Brain, stop it.

Louise still wasn't taking to things all that well either. I could tell she was putting forth the effort, but being constantly called flat wasn't helping her temper. But I still find beaning someone with a whole bottle of wine to be uncalled for. Only time would make things better, and time wasn't something we had a lot of.

"I've been meaning to ask, but why do you have that sword with you all the time?" Once again, I was in the back, either cleaning dishes or preparing food.

"Safety reasons," I shrug. It was better to be prepared for the inevitable. Either Louise snapping or the noble finally showing up. It was only a matter of time before one happened.

"Worried about your sister?" she teased. Not really. Louise had already shown that she could defend herself with just about anything at hand (though was going to have to show her proper technique later).

"At this rate, I'm more inclined to save the customers from my sister," I was forced to shake my head. I've done jobs where the customer was everything, and some were just so hard to not punch in the face. The end result was several dents in my room's walls that wouldn't be found without rearranging the room. Ok, it wasn't much better, but the customer's were unharmed.

"That bad?" She raised an eyebrow. I forced myself to nod. Something told me she wasn't exactly buying the whole sibling thing.

"I know what she's going through. Somewhat, anyway. Some customers I would love nothing more to punch in the face. I can only imagine being drunk complicates the manor," I frowned. There was a reason I promised to never drink, and that was part of it. Suddenly a commotion came up from the front. Almost like everyone was leaving at once.

"What's going on now?" I mutter, making my way to Derf. Was this who we've been looking for? I didn't exactly know what we were supposed to do. Turn him in? Make him swear to never do this again? I needed to figure out the complexities of this language, I swear. And he came with guards, too. That made things more complicated.

' _What weapon?'_ I grit my teeth. Was he even the guy? Based on the fact he seemed to have forced everyone out, that would be yes. A rogue weapon would nice, but could I take them all at once? A smoke bomb and blade fury would do nicely, provided that they staid grouped together.

"That's Lord Chelenne," Jessica hissed. Based on her reaction, he is our guy. "He is the Royal Queen's levy collector." Yep, this sounded like the person we were looking for. And Louise was serving him. I'm just going to watch the fireworks, and make sure Louise didn't need backup.

"Does this place employ men now?" The man asked, and everything went quite.

"He did goofed. I think Louise is going to kill him," was about the response I could give. Jessica looked at me in alarm, while Louise was slowly reaching the point of critical rage. "Upon a closer look, it's just a girl with small breasts. Now, let me take a look at exactly at how small they are."

"Screw that, I'm killing him," I split Derf in half, forming two curved swords, the Dreadblades, Fate and Fortune. A quick shroud of shadow turned my clothes into leather armor.

Cruch! Of course, my intervention wasn't going to be needed. Like I said, Louise could take care of herself. With great ferocity, might I add. The noble was clearly not expecting anything as her foot landed directly on his nose, sending the man flying out of his chair. Everyone let out a gasp as the guards moved in to protect their master.

' _Bad move,'_ my body dissipated, appearing in front of one of the guards, landing a satisfying kick to his face. My feet touched the ground in front of Louise, and I let the swords stay in the shadow's. For now.

"Piss off, little man. The show's over," I glare down at the man in complete and utter contempt. Fate and Fortune were not the only tricks I had up my sleeves.

"Isabell?" Louise asked. Almost everyone in the shop seemed to pause. Sigh. I guess that cat was out of the bag.

"You dare kick the face of a noble! I'll have you arrested and hanged!" The man fumed. I grin, the Dreadblades taking form in my hands, enjoying the look on his face turn from rage to surprise. Which was then further amplified by one of Louise's explosions. While nowhere near it's true destructive power, the resulting blast of energy knocked every bodyguard, alongside the scumball, onto the ground.

"Are you a noble?" The man stuttered in shock. He wasn't the only one. The girl's, along with Scarron, just stood there, in awe of the display before them.

"I have no name to give to a lowly official like you," Louise snapped. Well, it was her show now, anyway. Her wand pointed straight at the man "Before you regret it, shut up and get out of here!" I'm beginning to wonder where this temper comes from.

"Are you a fallen noble, tiring to hide her identity!" The man shouted back. What was with these people and keeping their ego's alive?

"Who are you calling a fallen noble?" Louise finally pulled out the writ. The man paled considerably. You, sir, are so busted.

"Please, please, forget what just happened. I'll offer this," the man begged pathetically, him and each of his guards pulling out a sack of coins.

"Get out!" Louise yelled, causing me to wince. The men didn't be told twice, rushing out the door, leaving the money behind, as i snuck away into the shadows. Best to let Louise enjoy her victory. But that didn't stop me from hearing who won the tip race. Louise won by a landslide.

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P.O.V. Louise

Why was I doing this again? I didn't know the answer to the question myself. Maybe it was because this was my only chance to wear it. I had almost given up on the tip race long ago, yet somehow, I still won.

"We are going to have leave, now that our cover is blown," I heard my familiar sigh. "At the very least, we found out one of them, so the rest shouldn't be that hard." Either way, I was going to be the one writing the report. Her handwriting was atrocious, with reading still a struggle.

"What are you doing in there, anyway?" Isabell questioned. I finally finished putting on the fairy buster, slowly stepping out of the closet. Her eyes widened in shock. For once, I was the one that surprised her.

"Since I was given the opportunity, I decided to borrow it," I said, trying to avoid her wide eyed stare. This was not the reaction I was expecting. What was I even expecting? I currently wasn't expecting what followed, as my familiar said something very strange.

"Kawaii!"

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And that's a wrap. Isabella get's a bit more spotlight to make up for the last chapter. This was out later than I would have liked. Feel free to blame Overwatch, my Pokemon Snakewood nuzlocke, and me finishing Gurren Lagann. Please, do give your thoughts about Isabella returning to her world with Louise in company. Otherwise, I hope to see you next time!


	11. Your Family is Crazy!

Since nobody really decided to give me any feedback, I've decided to go full steam ahead. Hopefully, you enough Isabella's somewhat wacky family. Who is up for seeing Louise out of water, so to speak.

It's view answering time!

Boyzilla: Yeah, that episode was not one of favorite's, and it was one I dreaded writing about. I was almost going to skip it, which I should have, in hindsight, but went ahead with it.

Chaosrin: Early writing for Kirchie isn't something I'm proud of.

KingAuthor3: The armor just that, armor. It's there because, well, I cannot see a girl in a t-shirt and jeans wielding the Ashbringer. It just messes with my head, so all classes or specs have armor, based on the class or spec.

Now on with the show! Be warned, there is after Louise and Isabella had returned to the Academy.

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P.O.V. Louise

I let out a yawn as the sunlight filtered through the window. I slowly sat up. Something wasn't right. Hadn't I asked Isabell to get me up? That left one of two possibilities. The first was that she was still asleep. This was unlikely. My familiar may have been a heavy sleeper, but she was an early riser. That left the somewhat more likely alternative. She simply forgot. Normally Isabell wasn't forgetful, but she had been extremely excited about returning. Something about running some more experiments on portal spells. I didn't really mind. Classes were out for the time being, and I hadn't been called home, yet (that was a blessing, even though I missed my sisters).

This is of course when I noticed a note left on the nightstand. I rubbed the sleepiness out of my eyes, before picking it up. Even with that, I still couldn't tell what exactly was written. It was Tristanian, that was certain, but the handwriting was poor. I let out a sigh. Without a doubt it was Isabell's handwriting. I was not going to spend the time trying to figure out what was written. For all I cared, her handwriting should be considered a Brimir forsaken abomination, it was that bad.

Finding her proved something much easier said than done. Typically, it was simple. Look where nobody was. My familiar was somewhat socially reclusive, and did not like being in the center of attention. And because of her reputation, often times at the Academy, that's what she was. However, with many returning to their lands during the summer months, hardly anyone was around. Meaning the entire Academy is an alone place. It's not like she could vanish into thin air, right?

Apparently I was wrong. Isabell is capable of vanishing into thin air. Considering the event's at the Charming Fairy, I shouldn't be too surprised. But it didn't make it any less annoying! Why did she vanish without warning! I look back at the note. Actually, that is probably what it was for. But the ultimate question remained. Where did she go? Maybe something went wrong with her portal experiment? Last time, she did need my help to even create one. Could she do it alone? If so, it explained why I couldn't find her. It also raised the question of why I was needed the first time. Maybe it simply got easier each time it was done? Isabell thought so, but acknowledged that it was impossible to truly know.

Around a hour later, and what patients I had for the matter had been used up. I'm just going to resummon her. That should do the trick, right? That required redrawing the summoning circle, remembering the incantation, finding a place to actually cast the spell. Of course, only after all that did she finally show up. My familiar's timing is impeccable. She finally shows up after all that work! What was the point!

"Where were you?" I shouted, annoyed. The first cause was the fact I went through the steps to actually prepare the summoning spell, and then poof, it was all for nothing. The second was the fact she left, with only a incomprehensible note left to explain her prolonged absence.

You're going to find out," my familiar was clearly happy. Which meant whatever she was doing was a success. "Heard back from your family about returning for the summer?" Part of me wondered exactly why she was asking. School being out during the summer month's seemed to be something this place and her home had in common. It was understandably curious. Even more so with a weapon from that place appearing here. It made no sense.

"No," my face betrayed my disappointment. As much I feared Isabell might to some extent embarrassing, I did want to see my sisters. Still, I wonder exactly what she was planning. Knowing her, it was bound to be interesting. She frowned. My familiar was quite, well, vocal about her desire of meeting my family. Part of me wanted to write it off as her being curious, much rather her knowing my mother's reputation. How would she even know that? At this point, I wouldn't be all that surprised if she did.

"Well then, since everyone else is on vacation, how about we go on one of our own?" her question caught me off guard. That was most certainly not what I had been expecting. It's not that the answer was no. Far from it. But where would we go? She knew nothing about the area. She didn't know anything about the continent! Unless that wasn't her plan in the first place. Wait. Portal experiments. Home was in another dimension. That was also out of school for the summer. She wanted to vacation, in her world? Could that even work? At the very least, she would be returning temporally. She had a way there and a way back. But one massive problem remained. That problem was the language barrier, something that could only be solved by two things, time and magic. Time was not a solution in this case, for clearly obvious reasons. Did she really think magic was going to work for a language nobody knew?

And much to my surprise it did. Of course, we did have to get Professor Colbert to cast the spell. I was naturally nervous. I mean, how exactly was I going to introduce myself? Hi, I'm the person that accidentally kidnapped your daughter to another dimension was not going to cut it. Part of me had stopped myself from thinking about it that way. Isabell had said, to her, it was nothing more than an accident that most would consider impossible. And from what my familiar told me her mother mostly felt the same way. Nothing on her father or brother though. It was going to be awkward, to say the least. But the other option was to stay here with nobody for company. Besides, if I didn't show up, it might sent the wrong message.

"We ready to get this show on the road?" Isabell grinned. Of course, she was ready, backpack and all. But was I? Wait. I needed clothes. I nearly forgot about that!

"I need to pack," I said, annoyed that I had nearly forgot something that important.

"Not really. No offense, but a school uniform is going to cause you to stick out," my familiar shrugged.

"Then what exactly am I supposed to wear?!" I snap. Isabell raised her hands defensively.

"Relax. We can either buy so or I can lend you some of my old stuff. No big deal," Isabell smiled. Wait, some of her old stuff. I looked up at her. How old is this stuff? She was only two years older than I was, and yet she towered over me. Was she ever my size to begin with? That was something I couldn't imagine.

"Fine," I huff. Of course this would also prove to be a chance at Isabell finally getting more clothes, the two shirt's and the additional pair of pants was not really cutting it. Clothing was meant to last a while, but washing it each and every day was starting to prove too much.

"Alright! Let's do this!" she twirled Derf about her head. For her desire to keep her powers hidden, she sure doesn't take it seriously.

"Stop spinning!" The sword shouted. Was is possible for a sword to get motion sickness? That would certainly be a poor quality for a blade. As to be expected, the blade grew into a crystalian staff, ending in three light purple crystals. My familiar's clothes became covered in purple and silver robes. Motes of magic swirled through the air, condensing into a portal. She made a quick bow, mostly as a teasing gesture. I stepped through, with her following close behind.

"Louise Valliere. Welcome to Earth."

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I didn't actually know what to expect. A world without a magic was something I couldn't really imagine, combined with technology that made Isabell's laptop a common item. But the house didn't look that special. It certainly wasn't a house that anyone back home would own. If anything, it was a mixture of what one would expect of a house owned by a commoner, and one owned by a noble. It looked somewhat small (by comparison), but also had a yard that would only be expected in a village, not the middle of a city, along with several flowers, inside a small garden. The building didn't look like it was made of wood, but at the same time, it lacked the appearance of stone. Without an earth mage, I had doubts about how easy it was to make a house of earth and stone.

Before I could notice anything, Isabell was already running up to the house. I paused, noticing the path of light grey stone. What was it? From the look of it, the stone had been somewhat weathered, cracks beginning to form on the surface. Still, despite that, the rock had cut into four massive slabs. What exactly was the purpose? How did they move it into place? I noticed the stone stairs, balking slightly at the sight. It stone stairway was made out of the same substance as the flat plane, but it was connected! In one piece! How was that carved out? No, that was impossible. There was no way that could have been carved! But that was the only explanation.

"Louise, come on!" my familiar waved from the top of the stairs. I took the steps carefully, still perplexed by the material.

"What is this stuff?" I ask, tapping my foot against the stone substance. It was clearly common and light if it was being used like this.

"That's concrete," Isabell said, tapping on the door with her fist.

"Concrete?" I question. I may not have known nothing about rocks, but I'm pretty sure I haven't heard of it before. Then again, she did find a fake sword fairly easily, so it was safe to assume she knew more about this type of thing than I did.

"It's a mixture of broken down stone, gravel, and sand, mixed together with water and cement," she said. Wait. This stuff was created! That explains why it's all in one piece. Before I could question it, the door opened.

"Isabella!" the shriek was female, as my familiar suddenly had another body clinging to her own. The figure had hair that borderlined on being a faded blonde, and was about a head shorter than her. Isabell returned the hug after a short bout of flailing.

"Hi mom," my familiar hugged back, clearly not putting all her strength into it, for obvious. So this was her mother? I really couldn't see the resemblance. My familiar had light brown hair that was short and straight. Her mother's hair was long and curly, alongside it's faded blonde color. They opened their eyes almost at the same time. Now I could see it. Both women had emerald green eyes.

"Is that a sword?" her mother finally noticed Derf strapped to her daughter's back. Normally, I would be annoyed for being ignored, but from what I could gleam, swords were something considered old fashioned. Which meant a blade was going to stick out.

"Yeah. Mom, this is Derf, Derf, this is my mom," the last part was spoken in as a warning for it to be on it's best behavior. Her eyebrows raised slightly, clearly wondering if her daughter had lost her mind.

"Charmed," Derf popped out of his sheath for a second, before retreating. Isabell's mother was shooked, eyes going wide, clearly not expecting what had just happened. Considering how rare talking swords were at home, the existence of one here was something that could shatter minds.

"Likewise," my familiar's mother recovered surprisingly quickly to the sight of a talking sword. She finally turned to me. I wanted to flinch under her gaze, but I held firm, somewhat surprised when she smiled.

"And you must be Miss Valliere. I trust that my daughter has been on her best behavior thus far," the blonde asked. That's what she was worried about? How Isabell was treating me? I take her daughter into another dimension, and she's worried about how I've been treated?

"Ms. Whelan, your daughter was a pleasure to have," I grinned, noticing my familiar had grown nervous, likely due to her mother's question. She grinned even more.

"Good. Exactly what I expected to hear. Now come in. I've been baking cookies."

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Dare I say those cookies were some of the best things I have ever tasted. Unfortunately, my familiar wasn't having any at the moment. In the strangest turn of events, it turns out I'm kicking her out her bed. I tried to make it sound like no big deal (the bed had finally shown up), and I didn't want to kick her out in her own home. But her mom was having none of it.

' _You are a guest, and you are going to sleep in a bed!'_ I remember what she said clearly. The house didn't have a guest room, or at least, not one ready. I was quick to realize the fight wasn't going to be one I could win, so in the end, I let it go. Still, it didn't stop me from feeling bad about it. Plus, I was going to have to go through her old clothes to find something to wear. I was surprised that they kept some.

Another strange thing was that I hadn't seen her brother or father. I knew she had both, but it was somewhat odd to not see them. A sudden racket broke me out of my thoughts. Where did that come from? Another muted outburst echoed from downstairs. Ok, what was going on? I heard a door open, Isabell stepping out her room, gripping a pillow like a club.

"One second," I heard her say as she walked past me, stepping rapidly down the stairs. I heard faint whispers of a discussion, followed by a yelp. Isabell slowly climbed back into few, as I looked at her confused. What was that? Why was the pillow she was holding gone?

"He should be far more civil now," she said, briefly looking at me. He? Was she talking about her brother? What exactly was going on down there that wasn't civil? Was there some type of sibling rivalry? He didn't show up at the door. Was that a sign of something more? I hope not. I didn't come here to watch sibling quarreling. Though if it came to a straight fight, I would put money on Isabell anyday.

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Isabell's mother had brought out a lot of clothes from the basement. I shifted through them slowly, especially figuring out that I wasn't going to finding any skirts or dresses (I did find a fancy suit though). Also for a short period of time, my familiar had a fascination with the color black, if her clothing from a few years back was anything to go by. Thankfully, those articles of clothing were far too large, so I could thankfully skip them.

Still, what I was left with was old. Based on the marking's, my familiar wore the clothing more than five years ago! Way to make me feel short. I know that wasn't her intention, given her height (and from the looks of it, she had all the height in her family at that). I tried on the clothing in one of the side rooms with a lockable door. They fit nicely, despite being a bit on the large side. I returned to the box quickly, noticing something that wasn't there before. A light grey and brown ball of fluff. I paused. They had a pet? I was certain Isabell would mention something like that. And how exactly was I going to put this back with it there?

"Keke, food!" my familiar's voice rang down from above. The ball uncurled rapidly fast, ,as the cat scampered upstairs, leaving me looking down in confusion. Exactly how fast did that thing move? There was no way that should have been possible. It looks like even the family pet is strange.

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The remainder of the day was fairly simple. Isabell's father was overjoyed at her return (though if looks could kill, I would most certainly would be dead, which was more or less what I originally expected). And I finally got a name for her brother, Jacob, who remained indifferent to his sister's return. Then again, said sister also carried him to the dinner table, which confirmed that she was, in fact, the stronger of the two.

Despite the chaos that was dinner (with me figuring out what Isabell considered a delicacy, something called a stuffed burger), it was strangely enjoyable. Followed by a lot of storytelling. Of course, everything that happened sounded like something out of a tall tale to them. Which resulted in a display of not only her powers, but also Derf. We didn't stay up that late, due Isabell having some type of surprise for tomorrow. I was somewhat annoyed (I had just gotten the hang of Mario Cart, on something called a Wii), but the clock read a combination of digits that she said meant midnight. I wonder what exactly she had in store.

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Sorry for the short chapter. It was originally going to be longer, and introduce more of Isabella's extended family, but I decided against introducing that many characters so quickly. Don't worry, we are going to see some of them in the extremely near future, after this next chapter, to be exact. And holy cow. I've gone eleven chapters without stating Isabella's eye color. How did I not remember that detail!

What exactly is happening next chapter, might you ask? Well, it involves a certain guild, and a certain movie. Don't worry, I'm not going to spoil a damn thing. And speaking of guild, who do you think Hades is? Assuming he as the courage to show up, that is.

Hopefully you all enjoyed, and I hope to see you next time!


	12. Warcraft: The Movie

Normally, I'd be forced to slap a spoiler warning on this chapter, but sense I'm not spoiling anything, I guess I get a free pass. This chapter will have a background focus on the Warcraft movie, which was actually pretty good, despite the reviews. Even my grandparents got what was going on during the movie. End rant.

I also know nothing about how Overwatch works on console, so I apologize if I get anything wrong.

Anyway it's review answering time!

Amerdism: So far, the way the story has been set up, it wouldn't make sense to add characters from Warcraft. The only one that is more or less an explanation of exactly how Brimir knew about the weapons in the first place and a few other things, but that goes into spoiler territory. Isabella is extremely unlikely to get her own magical powers. The way I've set up Earth in this story would make it hard to explain.

Potato: The first guess was good, actually. However that person will always be known as the person Isabella stabbed. The second, well, Isabella has had no boyfriend, ex or otherwise. One ex-girlfriend though. And thanks.

Boyzilla: Louise is going through a lot of culture shock. Plus, Isabella kind of said that Louise's normal behavior on the reason she's a noble isn't exactly something that will fly. Though with Isabella's parents, she is overcompensating quite a bit. Her friend's and her familiar's brother, not so much.

Ninon: Yeah, I'd actually would be surprised if it was. The technology will play parts with the story, but in Helkeginia, laptops and cellphones will only work in areas where something from Earth has been summoned. It serves as a balancing act, to keep it from getting too out of hand.

Let's get on with the show!

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Surprisingly, I was the first one up. While I had found my familiar to be a heavy sleeper, she raised herself from that slumber quite early. It must be the fact she was finally back in her own room. That room was small, nearly half the size of my room at the Academy, but it still had space. Though the wall opposite of the bed seemed to be covered by a bookshelf. A very messy bookshelf at that. Some shelf's had books in normal rows, while other times they were stacked. I didn't know that Isabell is a fan of the literary arts.

Speaking of my familiar, where was she anyway? I took a peak off the bed, noticing a lump of grey in the middle of, what was it? A sleeping bag? Isabell had retreated into the object, seemingly turning herself into a sphere. It was curious. I knew she took something with her before she went to sleep. Some strange stuffed animal, if I wasn't mistaken. Something with a strange structure on it's neck and three horns on it's head.

With great care to not step on my familiar and let her sleep, I exited the room. Normally, I would have done such, but considering the sleep shirt I had borrowed went down to my ankles, along with the fact my familiar was kind enough to give a pair of her sleep pants. While she had to roll up the oversized pants, they were surprisingly comfortable. I wasn't surprised that my familiar didn't own a nightgown. She only had one dress, and that appeared to be quite old and it had never been worn. I decided to head downstairs.

"Damn it!" I heard a slam halfway down the stairs. I balked at the cursing that followed. What was going on down there? The voice belonged to Jacob. Was this what had happened yesterday? What exactly was happening? I paused, half tempted to go back upstairs and grab my familiar. But ultimately, it would be best to let her sleep. If she was still asleep at this time, then it was for a good reason. Besides the swearing, how bad could it be?

"It's High Noon!" Another voice declared from downstairs. I paused. That was most certainly not the voice anyone I recognized. Was there somebody else in the house that I wasn't aware of? No, that was unlikely. Unless that cat of theirs actually talked (the thing was extremely vocal), there would be nobody else up. Plus, it was most certainly nowhere near noon. I stepped down the stairs, taking a look at what was happening.

It was, well, strange. The game that was on the screen (television, or T.V. for short), was familiar. I'm certain I've seen Isabell play that game before. So some games that could be played on a laptop could also be played on a console. Strange. I've never seen her play Mario Cart. Maybe it wasn't one of those games that could be played like that. What exactly was he waiting on anyway? Suddenly, the character on the screen fired his weapon, seemingly taking out three opponents, before jumping into the fray. The game his was in shortly finished.

"Looks fun," I said as I approached. He hadn't noticed my arrival, and I noticed him twitch before responding. Another similarity between him and his sister. The fact that both of them did the same thing cemented them as siblings, despite their differences.

"It is," he said plainly, "Would you like to join me?" He offered. At least he has some gentleman like qualities, swearing aside.

"Sure, you got room for one more?" my familiar appeared out of nowhere, almost like a ghost, rubbing her eyes sleeply. Jacob's face paled a considerable degree. Why was that?

"So long as you swear not to go Torbjorn," he snapped. Torbjorn? Who was a Torbjorn? And why did he not want her to play him? Or her. What type of name was that anyway?

"I cross my heart to not play Torbjorn," she said, literally making an X over her heart with her finger.

"Who is Torbjorn, and why do you not want her to play him?" I demanded.

"Dwarf Fortress!" was my familiar's immediate and not clarifying response. What did that even mean, anyway?

"She's good enough as an Engineer in TF2, and Torbjorn is pretty close. And on console, Torbjorn borderline overpower. Playing against her would be nightmare," he said, tossing me a controller. One that a barely caught. "Be careful with those. They're expensive."

"Then don't throw them," I snap back. He let out a huff.

"You know Louise is right. I payed for half of this, so stop trying to break it," Isabell chastised her younger sibling. I was somewhat surprised. From what I understood, her laptop was pretty good, so why she would spend money on this was beyond me. I finally sat down between the two, the large couch (which was little more than a massive, cuffy, chair).

"Uh, what am I supposed to do with this?" I look down at the mess of buttons and sticks. This was nothing like the extremely simple Wii controler (which was nothing more than a stick).

"Left stick is for moving, right is for aiming, the buttons on the back are your abilities and guns, press x for your ultimate when it's fully charged" Isabell quickly clarified. I placed four fingers near the buttons, before looking at the screen. From the look of it, I had the largest of the three from the split screen, the one on the bottom. That always seemed to happen.

"We're going to need a tank," Jacob's voice broke me out of my line of thought. My familiar grinned.

"Then I shall break them," she chose a character with short clipped hair (which was pink), and was very heavily build, even more so than she was.

"Zarya?" he questioned. Isabell shrugged. "You're using Zarya?"

"In mother Russia, bear wrestles you!" she declared happily. The muscular pink haired body builder picking up some type of cannon. That left me with who I was going to chose for this. Something simple would be good. That Soldier 76 character seems fairly simple.

"Soldier 76. That's a good choice," my familiar grinned. I looked at the rest of the group. Jacob himself had actually taken the role of support (as far as I could tell). The rest of the team consisted of some golem like thing, a person with purple skin, and someone who was actually really well dressed for the snow covered well, I don't know that it was. A factory that was made to make giant golems?

I quickly experimented with the abilities before the match began. This Soldier's gun was fairly accurate, and surprisingly (ok, considering the technology needed to even make this game, not so much), had more than one shot. Another increased movement so long as I held down the button, but I couldn't shot. The last two was some type of cannon shot, and something that was placed on the ground. Isabell told me the three shots fired at once was to bring down low health opponents, or to burst down health. The yellow circle was a swift heal that bring me back from one health, but she also said to never let it get that far.

What ensued was a chaotic mess of explosions, cannons, and bullets. We actually succeeded in our defense (a last minute ultimate stacking did that), but before any more games could occur, it was apparently time for breakfast.

I let out a sigh. Apparently, Isabell and I were going somewhere. Of course, that actually required getting changed, something that I had finished and something my familiar should have finished doing quite a while ago. I paused as the door opened. I was certainly not excepting that. How would one except that? She clearly looked like she was wearing armor. Of course, it wasn't actually armor. It may have had the appearance of nightmare black steel, but it made little sound, betraying its nature. It was also extremely familiar. Wait? Why is my familiar dressed up as her WoW character?

"Mom, we're heading out!" she shouted grabbing a key.

"You are not driving a car dressed like that," her mom warned. My familiar opened her mouth in protest. "Ever"

"Fine, I'll call Leo."

The fact that it took Leo a handful of minutes was surprising enough. What he used however. I knew the whole basic idea. Using an engine instead of a horse to make a cart move. But a cart made out of some type of metal?

"Everyone buckled in?" the young man asked. He hadn't changed much, though his dark hair was somewhat shorter. Wait, what exactly did he mean by that? "Louise, you know we can't go anywhere until you buckle up, right?"

"No! What does that even mean?" I said, somewhat annoyed with his tone. Isabell sighed.

"It means hold still, I'll do it for you," she turned around, taking a few seconds to pull some type of belt across my body.

"What does this even do?" I huffed in annoyance. What was the purpose of this annoying and uncomfortable device, and why was it here?

"The first reason is for safety. We get into a crash, which is unlikely, I don't think Isabella is going to be happy seeing you fly through the windshield. The second is that it's a crime," Leo shoot back. That was, actually two extremely good reasons. Didn't make it any less uncomfortable.

"It would be nice to know exactly where we're going," I say, crossing my arms.

"You haven't told her?" Leo's tone implied that he raised his eyebrow. I could almost hear the smirk. "Here is a hint, Louise. Why would she dress up as her Warcraft character? Which, by the way, I can't believe you were serious about that." I paused. Why exactly would she do that, anyway?

"Something to do with the guild?" I question. It made sense. Of course, Leo wasn't dressed up for the occasion. And if so was Hades going to be there? If so, I'm going to enjoy giving him a piece of my mind.

"Close, actually," it was Isabell that finally spoke up. "The Warcraft movie came out, and a few of us are meeting up to go see it." I nodded. That made some sense. But wait, Warcraft? Wasn't the game called World of Warcraft?

"The games that came before World of Warcraft were called Warcraft," she continued. This is exactly why I'm certain she can secretly read minds. Moments like this.

"Isabella, doing that isn't helping disproving rumors about you reading minds," Leo stated. So I wasn't the only one thinking that. Any joking aside, that still was creepy.

"If I could read minds, I would be able tell how you've been doing," Isabell hinted, changing the conversation.

"Well, if you must be so blunt, I've been doing fine, thank you for asking," the dark haired man shrugged.

"Leo, you visited another dimension. You expect me to believe that you haven't been doing something," my familiar responded. That was curious.

"Why is that important? And why are you so worried about it? It took both of us do that last time," I state. Why was she worried about it? Leo was normal. No magic, and only an understanding for machines. So what was the fuss about?

"Leo made a Deathstar in a Minecraft server. Somehow, the redstone used made it develop it's own personality. That just happened to try and destroy everything on the server," she said. I understood none of that, but apparently it was important.

"Hey, that was a one time occurrence and you know it!" Leo snapped back. Apparently this was some type of inside joke. Expect for the fact that she was dead serious.

"It still isn't the most ringing endorsement. No tinkering around with dimensions, ok?" my familiar responded, clearly done with the conversation at hand.

"Fine," Leo surrendered, before taking a quick look at Isabell. What was he thinking? "Have you heard?" Ok? What exactly was going on?

"Leo, I've been gone for three months. You're going to need to be more specific that 'have you heard?'" she responded.

"It's about Hu," he said. I could almost feel the temperature in the car drop. For starters, who was Hu? And why exactly did her name cause that type of reaction?

"What about Hu?" Isabell nearly spat. Ok, now I was even more curious, and somewhat worried. Anger, no, this was sadness, seemed to radiate off her body.

"She went missing around the same time you did. Any idea where she went?" Leo questioned carefully. He was fully aware he was walking on ice with this one.

"She got a scholarship to an art school. Never told her parents. Leo, you know just as well as I do exactly how well she got along with her parents," the last part was dripping with sarcasm.

"If you say so," Leo finally turned away from the clearly painful conversation. I wanted to ask my familiar, but given her present behavior, that wouldn't be a good idea. I wasn't going to try and force her to talk. We were here to have fun, not deal with crazy drama. I took a look out the window, fighting the urge to keep my jaw in place.

"What type of mansion is that?" I faintly breath aloud. The building was massive, almost the size of my own home, if not actually larger.

"That is our stop, actually," was Leo's response, clearly enjoying the shock.

"What?" I nearly shout. How was that even possible? A building that large being used for these movies! What was a movie, anyway?

"Of course. How else are they going to fit in more than a hundred people per theater?" Isabell grinned. Over one hundred! These movies must be massive events if this.

"You're meaning to tell me that there will be more than a hundred people there?" this was to much.

"I hope not," Leo huffed, parking the car. I started trying to figure out how to unbuckle the belt strapped across me. This thing was an annoyance. Isabell rolled her eyes, opening the door and releasing the buckle, finally freeing me.

I gazed up at the building. It was kind of bland, excluding the massive panels of glass that made up the front of the building. Above that was a splashing of bright red symbols, likely letters.

"Linthice!" a voice shouted, waving her hand above the crowd. The voice and the robes seemed familiar, much like Isabell's own costume. Syla, perhaps? Ok, so the girls were clearly dressing up for this. For fun? Maybe, but it still wasn't something I expected her to do.

"So cute!" was her sudden shriek, running over to me before starting to pinch my cheeks. No, I got to much of that had home. No thank you.

"Stop it," I flail finally causing her to back off. I frown. My familiar certainly keeps intresting company.

"You two are such nerds," the voice of a man said from behind me. Ok, who was he?

"Says the High School teacher hanging out with kids that could be his students," Isabell quipped back.

"Yeah! Besides, you're here to watch it with us," Syla protested. Grim raised his hands in mock surrender. The man was certainly older than the others by a good deal. Not as old as Professor Colbert, but still getting there.

"That makes five of us! Is anyone else coming?" Syla cheered. She was clearly in a good mood. I didn't see much of her face under the white hood she was wearing.

"Likely just Hades at this point. Everyone else is busy," Grim sighed. "Which means I'm on babysitting duty." Everyone shoot he a glare for the remark, forcing him to raise his hands in surrender.

Isabell and Syla quickly fell into a conversation as we waited for the last and final member to arrive. I hanged back somewhat. These were her friends after all, but I didn't know the first thing about them.

"You know she hasn't seen of us for quite a while," Leo said, leaning against a wall nearby.

"I know that!" I snap in response. Part of me didn't like him. I don't know why, but part of me just didn't.

"I see," he hummed. Ok, exactly what was he doing? "Then why are you jealous?" I paused. What was he talking about?

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I cross my arms with a huff. He let out a sigh.

"I'm not talking about Syla. I'm talking about Kirchie and Siesta," Leo said plainly.

"What?" I said in shock. How did he know those two, and what exactly was he talking about?

"Siesta's straight as far as I can tell, and if Isabella liked Kirchie, she would have already responded to her advances. You have nothing to worry about," he continued, either not hearing me or just not wanting to.

I have no idea what you're talking about," I snap in annoyance. Leo squints, before shrugging. I'm beginning to see where my familiar had developed some of her strange behavior.

"Fine. Can you answer this then. Have you ever heard of any of Isabella's weapons before, or Azeroth?" The sudden change in topic caused me to pause. What exactly was he doing? What was the point of all that?

"No," I snapped, annoyed with his previous questions. "And I fail to see why that's so important." Leo rolled his eyes.

"Look, Isabella having that power means one of three things. One, that whoever made that rune knew about our world, and somehow knew about Warcraft. The second means that Azeroth not only exists, but is also somehow connected to your world. The third. Well, with that type of luck, that person would have never lost a bet," he crossed his arms. I didn't get it. Concerned, yes. But he clearly overthinking it. It was far more likely that what she was playing was the cause. After all, certainly weapons like that would have been recorded, even if just in passing.

"Hey Dorsa," someone said was they approached. Black hair that was similar to Siesta, with blue-grey eyes. He wore jeans, alongside a blue and white shirt, that had something run straight up the middle.

"Hello, Hades," Leo smirked, "I'd like to introduce to my friend, Louise." This was Hades? The look on his face told me he knew exactly what was coming.

"Wait, that's," he didn't get to finish, after a swift kick to the leg made him yelp in pain. "What was that for?" he shouted.

"That's for asking a lady that type of question!" I shout back, noticing my familiar was howling with laughter in the background.

"Well, if I knew you were twelve, I wouldn't have asked!" he shouted back. My eyebrow twitched.

"Way to dig your own grave, Saito," Isabell shouted. I smack him in the head. Hard. How dare he make fun of my height! And other things. I would have hit him more, too, if she didn't decide to pick me up.

"That's enough tiger. Saito may disserve that, but we don't need him dead," she had picked me up from behind, as to stop me from doing any more damage. I finally stopped flailing about. Which resulted in my reunion with the ground.

"Come on kiddies, the movie is going to start in less than a half our," Grim broke up the laughing that most of us were enjoying, causings use to all give him an evil look.

*Around two hours later*

"That was much better than reviewers made it out to be," Syla said, stretching her arms.

"If that was supposed to be bad, then what are the good movies like?" I ask. Barring the elves, the movie proved to be quite enjoyable. Though I think I'm going to have to explain it to Isabell, considering I nearly jumped out of my seat in fright each time one showed up on screen.

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And that's a wrap. Sorry that the update was so late. I've been doing a lot of writing for my summer class, so I'm beginning to develop a bit of a writer's block. I'm just writing so much, I'm going to take a little bit more time between updates, simply so I don't burnout.

The most important thing in this chapter is that we finally know who Isabella's ex-girlfriend is. Who is Hu? Why does she matter? The second is Leo. He has been working on something, and he does have a few valid questions on the origin of Isabella's powers. What is he working on? Well, like with Hu, that's spoilers, so I'm not saying. But what do you think?

And Hades is Saito, and Grim is a highschool teacher. Syla, like Isabella (formerly) and Leo, is a college student. This is likely to be their only physical appearance in the story. Sorry if Siato is out of character (though I think he would ask that question if ever given the chance, being a hormonal teenager).

I've posted a poll on my profile. If you like (or dislike) this arc, then I would recommend checking it out and voting.

Hopefully you enjoyed, and I hope to see you next time.


	13. The Scepter of Azshara

It's review answering time.

Boyzilla: Yeah, I was beginning to feel afraid of that. The true purpose of these chapters is devolp not only Louise, but show Isabella's through how others see her. It seems I'm not hitting that nail quiet on the head. My writer's block isn't helping, and I know that shouldn't be an excuse.

KingArthur: Good guess, but we will have to wait and see. Though part of me wants to think he might go Men in Black on us to keep Halkegina a secret (I won't go that route though, maybe for an omake).

Based on feedback I have gotten, Louise and Isabella will be returning to Halkegina. This was an experiment in an attempt to show character development and traits through interactions with others, along with building up a few minor characters (like Jacob) and it's quite clear I didn't hit that nail on the head. Here is to learning from my mistakes though.

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V Louise

I rubbed my hand against my head, trying to force down the headache that was raging through it. Of course, on the last day of our visit, Isabell's mother just had to invite every single relative over. Due to her absence, the event was quite large. My familiar clearly had a great time. I, on the other hand, did not have as much as one. Isabell's father wasn't the only person that blamed me for her absence, though thankfully the people who did were few. Though one of her cousin's seemed to delegate herself to sending me dirty looks. Mandy, I think was.

Still, the final goodbye was a teary affair, which was to be expected. My familiar did promise to visit again when she was able. Strangely enough, her mother told me to keep her out of trouble. Which was strange, seeing as Isabell was the one keeping me out of trouble. Isabell's mother also gave me a hug along with her daughter, telling me I was more than welcome (I don't think her father shared the sentiment). Of course, it was up to my familiar to open the way, which she did after one last round of hugging.

*In Halkegina*

The portal spat us out in the exact same place we left. Funny how that actually worked. Actually, how did the portals work? I understood (some) of the basic parts, but nothing major. It seemed to be the exact same time as we had left Earth. Sun going down and moons coming up (how Earth only had one moon I would never understand). Thankfully, given the fact that it was summer, so no one was here to see us arrive. Not anyone who was already distracted anyway. At least Isabell had gotten new clothes. Her two shirts and single pair of pants had started to look beaten up and torn. Plus, she had decided to cut her brown hair, given that it grown longer than she liked. I pinched my brow in annoyance. This headache wasn't going away.

"You ok?" My familiar looked down at me, passive bag slung over her shoulder. It was easily twice the size as her original backpack.

"Why don't you ask me that?" Derf snapped. The sword was not in the best of moods. While he had been a hit with the cat, along with the adults at the party, Earth was not a place where one could carry around a sword in plain sight. As such, Isabell kept him at home for the entire trip. Something he clearly wasn't happy about.

"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times. I can't run around with you outside," my familiar snapped back. She was at the end her rope when it came to Derf complaining about the issue. I, other hand, was at the end of mine from the constant noise.

"Enough! My head hurts and I don't want to deal with this!" I snap aloud. Isabell's brow furrowed, but she decided to stay quiet. I quickly downed a glass of liquid as we passed by it. Hopefully that will at least help with the pain.

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*Louise's Room*

P.O.V. Isabell

I let out a yawn as I closed the door. To say I was tired was an understatement. Though, it was nice to see my family again. I was going to miss them. Nothing like just visiting home to make my homesick. I let out a sigh. Best to not focus on that at the moment. Knowing my luck, I'd have other things to worry about soon enough.

' _Damn it,'_ my brow scrunched together. I didn't mean that! Louise's face was a flush red. Much like a blush, but it was all over her face.

"Louise? You alright?" I question, slightly panicked. She was fine (mostly) when we left. Was she sick? Oh, I hope not. Illness was not something I had taken into account during our little trip. She doesn't respond to my question, staring blankly ahead. I press the back of my hand against her forehead. Thankfully, she didn't feel warm. What about the drink? It possibly had alcohol. If that was the case, Louise wasn't the, well, largest of individuals. That likely affected how quickly she got drunk. A drunk Louise. I wasn't going to enjoy tonight, was I?

I took a quick sniff. No, nothing smelled funny. So not drunk. Not sick (hopefully) either. Maybe she was just tired. Really, really tired. And to be honest, so was I. I turned around to get changed, but was suddenly grabbed from behind.

"What?" I almost shouted, confused. What just happened? The only other person in the room was Louise. Clearly, despite her frame, she was quite strong. Though, I'll pass off how much she did manage to move me (which wasn't much either), to her catching me off guard.

"Stay!" I heard her mutter in middle of her death grip. This was certainly not normal Louise behavior. At all. If she was drunk that might explain it, but at this point, that didn't seem likely. Whatever it was, maybe she could sleep it off.

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Apparently the answer to that was no, no it would not go away overnight. Now I was officially getting worried. This was not like Louise to be this damn clingy. No, correction, she didn't like physical contact. Period. However, I had no idea what the cause might be. That into itself was troubling enough. If I didn't know the cause, then how could I figure out the solution? I swear, magic better not be involved in this. But if so, I was going to need an expert. I was going to need to find Siesta. Was she even here? It was summer after all. Well, there was one way to find out.

Fortunately, it wasn't that long of a search.

"Siesta, just the person I was looking for," I gasped. Normally, I wouldn't be, but considering I was dragging around a third arm that just happened to have death grip around my lungs. And by third arm, I mean Louise. Seriously, she was a lot stronger than she looked. Siesta looked somewhat alarmed.

"Are you ok?" she asked, worried, before noticing the second pair of arms underneath my chest. "Uh". was her only response. Not that I blame her. The scene before her had to be ridiculous.

"I'm fine. Louise, not so much," I said, annoyed. Louise finally noticed that we had stopped, before resuming to nuzzle into my backside.

"What's wrong with her? I mean, besides the obvious," she said, puzzled look on her face. Louise finally noticed the other girl, hissing much like a cat, before increasing her grip on me.

"I don't know exactly why she is acting like this," I gasped slightly at the increased pressure. I was going to need a crowbar to get Louise to stop crushing my organs.

"What did she do before this started?" Siesta questioned.

"Louise drank a glass that she found unattended a few minutes before this all started," I stated. That would have to be it. Earth had no illness like this. Well, maybe the cuddle bug, but it was already way past that. Siesta's eyebrows furrowed, lost in thought.

"It could be, no that can't be right. Toughs are illegal," she muttered, eyes closed. My eyes widened in alarm.

"Siesta. What is illegal?" my voice was full of panic. What did Louise drink? Oh, don't tell me this place had that fantasy item!

"A love potion. But it's banned, like other mind altering potions," Siesta said nervously. I sighed. Damn it! But who would need a love potion? Wait a minute. Don't tell me Guchie and his girlfriend were still here for the summer. If so, that would sadly explain the potion. The understandably illegal love potion, at that.

"Do you have any idea where Guchie is?" I asked. Siesta gave me a confused look.

Yes. But why do you need him? Last I knew, you hated him," she questioned. I shrugged.

"Hate is such a strong word. Don't like him though. However, the person he is dating is a water mage, if her familiar is anything to go by," I grinned somewhat. "And I think I'm going to enjoy my conversation with her." Siesta nodded.

"I saw Guchie in the dining hall not to long ago, if that is any help," Siesta offered.

"Thank you," I grin, before making my best attempt at a bow. But with Louise grabbing where she was, it was more like an awkward stumble. We both laughed at my slight misfortune.

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"You must have been there when the effects kicked in," Montmorency stated.

"Thank you for telling me something I can already tell," I huffed in annoyance.

"Montmorency! Can it be that you were trying to get me to drink it!" Guchie accused, and likely, rightfully so. Before anything could break out from that, I pipped up.

"I didn't bring you up here for relationship counselling. You're either going to have to pay me for that, or do it in your own time," I crossed my arms in annoyance. Well, as much as I could anyway, with Louise now moving around to my front. The two spot me an annoyed look, clearly not used to someone interrupting their courtship time.

"I don't know what you want me to do," Montmorency shrugged. I let out a sigh of frustration. Just deep breaths, Isabella, just deep breaths.

"You know exactly what I want. I want Louise back to normal, as quickly as possible," I kept my voice level, trying to not to betray my growing anger at the situation.

"The effects will wear off in good time," she shrugged again. Well, that could be good news.

"And how long will that take?" I ask, curious. Hopefully, not very long.

"Maybe a month from now, or a year from now," she paused, as my mouth dropped. Nope. Just nope. A week, maybe I could to deal with. But a month to a year! Besides the obvious reason, no wonder these things were illegal.

"Wait a minute, you were planning on me," Guchie's face paled considerably.

"And based on Louise's current behavior, it probably was a good thing you didn't end up drinking that stuff," I said, annoyed but also concerned. I had no love for Guchie, but this was serious. So far, all Louise seemed to want was to cuddle. Nonstop. If Guchie drank it, well, this conversation would be a whole lot different, and he might not have one of his body parts anymore.

"I still don't see what you want me to do," Montmorency shrugged. Ok, this was getting on my nerves.

"Undo it. There is some type of potion to undo the effects, is there not?" I snapped, my fuse finally reaching the end of it's ropes. Her brows furrowed.

"Yes, there is. But I don't have the potion needed, or the ingredients to make it," Montmorency glared back, annoyed. At least she wasn't as much of a push over as Guchie was.

"If ingredients are a problem, I could always contact Louise's parents," I bluffed. Montmorency paled. "You messed up. Step up to the plate and fix it."

"You say that, but even getting a Spirit's Tear is really difficult!" she snapped back, "And even if you did do that, you'll end up in just as much trouble!"

"I can live with that," I shrugged. "I can't live Louise trying to use me as a living body pillow!" To drive the point home, Louise tried to pull me closer to her. Montmorency sent me another glare, preparing to say something back.

"I also know that making love potions are illegal," I stated, "You made an honest mistake. So you have two options. Fix it, or get burned." Her face made a scowl, before letting out a sigh.

"Fine! I'll make the potion!" she surrendered. That took a whole lot more time than what was needed. Oh well, at least we have it out of the way.

"Good. We leave first thing in the morning," I declare. To be fair, I was going to want to come along for this. Sounded like fun, personally.

"Tomorrow!" Montmorency shirked.

"What? You need something called a Spirit's Tear, right? That means we are either going to have to perform a favor for a spirit, or jump through a lot of hoops for it," I shrugged as looked at me like I was crazy.

"Fine!" she snapped. Well, at least I wasn't going use any more blackmail for this. Whether Louise held a grudge however, that was something I couldn't control. A bridge that we can cross when we arrive, I guess.

"So where is that location?" Guchie finally piped up. Nice to see he learned a little lesson about respect.

"Lake Lagdorian. Water-based mages bind a pact with the spirit there," she said. This was good. I wonder exactly what type of lake this Lake Lagdorian. Of course, Louise wasn't let give into my imagination.

"I think it would be best for you to leave. Now," I said sternly, my voice clearly betraying my annoyance. The pair seemed to flinch.

"I agree," Guchie stammered, quickly pulling Montmorency out with him. Louise, I swear, I'm not exactly happy.

"Louise, let go!" I snapped, finally forcing her off me. She looked at me with a pout, tears in her pink eyes. Ok, who taught her the bambi eyes look! Not cool, people, not cool at all.

"What's wrong?" the girl asked, still pouting. She really didn't understand what was going on, did she? Or did she not want to? After all, this was a mind altering potion.

"Louise, I know you don't get it right now, but this isn't you," I sigh. Why was I even trying this?

"That's not true! It's not because of the love potion!" Louise protested, teary eyed, " I really do love you!" My face got hot. Damn it. Today was not my day, was it? I pulled Louise into a hug.

"I'm going to assume that my mom, or Leo, or someone else, has told you exactly how I fall in love with someone. I fall in love with the person. Louise, right now, you aren't Louise. I'm sorry, but you're just not," I say, holding her tightly. "Just rest little Louise. Everything will just fine."

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"Wow. That is one big lake," I declared, looking out over the water, before my face grew puzzled. It looked like that area was heavily flooded, if the mostly submerged houses were anything to go by. And Guchie just fell into said lake. Ok, that was kind of sad.

"It looks like the water spirit is upset," Montmorency said, ignoring her flailing boyfriend. "When I came here with my father as a child, it was never like this." Well, that's just great. So when a spirit gets pissed, apparently it can change the environment. How many spirits even existed, anyway? If one could do this much, multiple would be a disaster.

"So it's mad," I let out a sigh. "That's not going to help us get what we want." How exactly did you negotiate with a spirit? Hopefully, nothing bad would happen.

"I think you're right," she frowned slightly. "Though I must admit, that is a nice hat." Oh, right, she was talking about the hat. Louise had decided to knit me one during the trip. The thing look ridiculous (I shouldn't be talking, the only reason I took up the needle and thread was for, um, medical reasons). I mean, how did a hat end up looking like a sweater? I wasn't going to complain, mostly so I didn't have to deal with another round of crying.

"Guchie, that water comes up to my waste! Just stand up and climb out!" I shouted, changing the subject. He had been flailing around in the water, looking kind of foolish. I could understand not being able to swim, but he was ten feet from the shore, at most.

"We should wait a while. The spirit won't come out until after the sun sets," Montmorency said, watching Guchie pull himself out of the water. How did that even work? Something to do with the moons? Like Earth's moon controlling the tides. You know what, I've been going with the flow so far. No reason to stop now.

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Oh course, the sun couldn't have gone down fast enough. With Louise under the effects of the love potion, I did my best keeping her entertained. Without doing something I knew I would later regret. Though I had to admit, seeing the sunset was quite beautiful, no different than it was back home. I watched Montmorency approach the water's edge, reaching into a sack. She proceeded to pull out a small frog. So that's where she kept it. Besides the breathing issues, it certainly was effective.

All right, Robin. I want you to contact one of my old friends," she placed the small frog on the ground, before pricking her index finger with a needle. She then let the drop of blood fall onto the frog's head. I didn't hear the rest as the frog hopped into the water.

"We're set?" I ask, pulling myself up to my feet. Montmorency nodded.

"If she can find it, Robin will bring it to use," she stated simply. That was better than nothing, I suppose. I looked at Louise and sighed.

"And now she's asleep," I stated, turning around. Leaning against a tree, she seemed to be very content. At least we wouldn't have anything embarrassing happen. I hope.

"When it arrives, let me do the talking. Don't do anything," Montmorency started.

"Stupid?" I finish for her. "We are dealing with an elemental spirit that decided to flood a town. I'm not an idiot. And I'd much rather not have a lake thrown at me." I cross my arms in annoyance. Suddenly, the water near the shore began to ripple, before forming into a small pillar of liquid. So that's the Water Spirit.

"Hey, this takes me back," Derf suddenly popped out of his sheath slightly. What? Takes him back to what? Of course, now wasn't exactly the time for questions.

"I am Montmorency Margarita la Fere de Montmorency," she said, stepping forward, hands stretched out. "A water user, of a family that has had a lasting pact with you. If you remember anything about my blood, please answer in a way we can recognize!" What followed was both interesting and rather startling, as the water stopped surging, before fashioning itself into a watery copy of Montmorency herself. Wait, her name twice? That's almost as bad as having two first names!

"I remember, Lonely One. I remember the fluid that runs through your body," the spirit spoke. It's voice felt old, almost alien, in a way. A pale light pulsed in it's chest as it spoke. Lonely One? What's with that title? None of my business, but curious. And directed at Montmorency as well.

"I'm glad. O Water Spirit, I have a favor to ask," Montmorency stated, staring at the copy of herself.

"A favor?" the spirit questioned. Something tells me it doesn't get asked for a tear that often. Of course, that could mean that there is a supply of them somewhere.

"I would like to have a small piece of you," she stared at the spirit as she asked the question. This was the moment of truth.

"I decline, Lonely One," the spirit said. Well, crap. Guess it's time to step up to the plate. I stepped forward, before kneeling.

"Just one small piece, please. I'm more than will do anything in exchange," I said, closing my eyes. Please, please don't let this bite me in the rear. The spirit, who was preparing to leave, reformed itself.

"Very well," the spirit said, reshaping itself back into the form of Montmorency, as the other two looked on, somewhat shocked. I let out a sigh of relief. Now to see exactly what the spirit wanted. "You would do anything, say you?"

"Yes I would," I answer plainly, hoping what was asked of me wasn't going to be completely over the top.

"We are occupied with increasing the water, and have no time to drive off attackers," it said. Attackers? Hello? You justed flooded a town, and now you worry about attackers? That's the reason you're being attacked! Of course, it was in my best interests to keep my mouth shut, rather than push my luck. "Some of your kind are attacking us. We desire to be rid of them." I pulled myself up.

"That seems very simple," I said, causing both Guchie and the real Montmorency to look at me, certainly in shock this time. "We drive them off, and we get a piece of you, correct?"

"We shall bestow it," the spirit said. Good. Let's get this show on the road.

"I don't want to be involved in a fight!" Montmorency shouted at me. Really? Does it really look like I care? Besides, I'm the one that's going to fight! Most certainly not the potion maker that caused this whole mess!

"It's better than a twelve by twelve with a cot and pot, Mon," I said, causing the girl to recoil.

"Fine!"

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This started a good old fashion stake out. Louise had woken up at that point, which, if anything, made things harder. I twirled my butterfly knife in my hand. Old nervous habits die hard.

"Would you stop that?" Guchie hissed, clearly unnerved. I didn't exactly blame him, considering the last time he saw the blade it turned into a magical knife that nearly killed him.

"Sorry. Nervous habit," I pushed the blade into my back pocket.

"What do you mean, nervous?" he questioned quietly, staring at me.

"Unknown enemy, likely an air mage, along with an unknown number," I stated. "Anyone would with common sense would be nervous. We are going in blind, after all."

"You make it sound like you don't have a plan," Guchie responded. Was he really the military child he tried to make himself out to be?

"I do have a plan. It's just plans have a tendency to only last a few seconds after contact with an enemy," I lectured. Especially when all but a handful of variables were known. We knew nothing of the potential skill level, which was likely quite high, considering whoever it was decided a spirit was something they can bring down.

"Is that so?" Guchie questioned. I quickly shoot him an annoyed glare.

"You sure you're father's a member of the military?" I ask. This was, at the least, fairly basic stuff. Plans rarely went off without any complications. Louise pulled on my arm, desperate for attention.

"Yes?" I question, getting a smile as she threw her arms around my neck. The extra weight nearly threw me off my feet.

"You're finally paying attention!" she shouted. My ears! Ow, Louise, volume control is a thing!

"I know, but please, stay quiet. We're trying to get you back to normal," I whisper, trying to keep her quiet. I could just use a druid artifact to get her to sleep, but I didn't want to expent the energy.

"What do you mean back to normal? I am normal! I just love you, Isabell!" She shouted. I clapped my hand over her lips.

"I know. I just need you to keep quiet for a bit, ok?" I say, running my hand through her hair. That gave her little nickname a startling new light.

"Yeah! I'll stay quiet!" she said gleefully. Note to spell, running a hand through her hair seems to calm her down.

"For that to happen to Louise, it must work pretty well," Montmorency said, clearly amused. I glared her down, the look on my face being one of, speak of this, and there will not be a body to find.

"Someone's here!" Guche whispered loudly. "Two someones." Well, that could be much worse. I unsheathed Derf. A faint chanting reached my ears. Looks like one was casting. If there was a time to strike, it would be now.

"Louise, stay here, ok? I don't want you to get hurt," I said, earning a nod from the girl. I moved into a better position. What should I use for this though? I could use the Scepter of Azshara, with all the water around. But it was a healing artifact. No really use in offensive setting, like this one. I guess I'll use Ebonchill. Even if the one does get the spell off, I can just freeze the water closest to the shore. Derf began to glow a faint blue in my hands, lengthening into an ice blue staff, complete with what looked like an oversized icicle at the tip. My transformation, quickly followed, clothing being overtaken by robes that were several shades of blue, along with white.

I noticed Guchie standing next to me after the transformation ended.

"Here to help?" I question. I wasn't going to turn down add, but Guchie would never be my first choice. But then again, I didn't have much of one at the moment.

"Of course," he said cockly, "A noble would be shamed if he made a peasant fight all by herself." I shook my head.

"Don't get cocky, kid. Right now, I have just as much magic as you do," I smirked, "You led in. I'll bring the pain."

"Let's do this, then," he said, brandishing his rose wand. He stepped out of the tree line, "Earth, robust mother, answer my wishes and become a moving wall!" The ground in front of him surged and rose up, before taking off towards the two. Only to be turned aside by a wind spell from the first caster with ease. He used the spell again, targeting the second figure, only to be matched by fire. Each caster took turns blowing away the attack. Ice versus fire. This should be good.

"My turn!" I shouted, leveling Ebonchill at the two. " **Ice Nova**!" The ice spell swirled around them like a blizzard, a thick frost grabbing their feet and cloaks, keeping them immobile. Of course, that didn't keep them from attacking in turn. Wind and fire met, forming a swirling spear of flame.

I wasn't going to deal with trying to block or dodge a spell of that caliber, forcing my own mana into the spell, destruction the spell, causing it to fall apart mid flight. Fighting these two was dangerous, if that was something they could do. By this point, the frost had thawed, allowing them to move again. Ok, it's time for that spell. Hopefully, this would actually hold for a little longer than a few seconds.

" **Polymorph**!" I shouted, causing the one with the staff to transform into a sheep. I pressed the attack, and thanks to the sudden, sheepy lose of its compatriot, I had the upper hand. Bolts of ice meet flame, the sound of crackling and sizzling filling the air as fire melted ice, and then being extinguished. It was clear that I had the upper hand though. Ebonchill was simply too strong, as was quickly overcoming the hooded figures defenses.

Of course, the **Polymorph** spell had already broken. And because I was focusing on the only standing opponent, I barely managed to dodge a barrage of razor sharp icicles. Damn it! That was not sixty seconds! If they wanted to play with pointed ice, fine by me!

" **Frozen Orb**!" I called, conjuring an orb of solid ice. The sphere moved slowly as it unleashed a spiral of frozen spikes from it's core. One stepped back into the water in an attempt to dodge, and a quick **Frostbolt** made sure they couldn't do much for the rest of the fight. However, the other had begun casting her own spell, forming a massive spike of ice, before sending it at me.

" **Glacial Spike**!" I shouted, the icicles around me quickly began to fuse together, making a spear much like my opponent's. The two frozen spikes meet head on, crashing together, nether giving way against the other. The tips cracked open, before shattering with explosive force. I raised my hand to my face to shield it from icy shards thrown out by the blast. The particles slowly began to settle, revealing a familiar face.

"Tabitha?" I shouted in shock. What was she doing here! Hearing her name caused the bluenette to pause. Wait. That meant the person I sent into the water had to be Kirchie.

"Honey, is that you?" She asked from her place in the lake.

"She's my honey!" Louise suddenly shouted, talking me from behind.

"Now I feel really feel stupid," I sigh. How exactly am I going to explain this?

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"I see, so that's what's going on," Kirchie said. It took a while to explain exactly what was going. Including Louise accidentally drinking a love potion. "But why did you make such a dangerous thing as a love potion?"

"That's on Montmorency, not me. Sorry about the potential hypothermia and sheeping, by the way," I rubbed the back of my head, clearly embarrassed slightly. Next time, don't run in all trigger happy.

"That's because," Guchie started, despite me try to wave him off, before getting kicked squarely in the shin.

"I just wanted to make some," Montmorency said as her boyfriend hopped around in pain. Kirchie frowned.

"That puts us in trouble," she said, looking at Tabitha. "We have to defeat the Water Spirit for Tabitha to keep face." Yeah, that was a problem. Two of them, actually. The most noteable sending a teenager against an elemental spirit.

"And exactly why is that? I mean, besides the flooding, of course," I said. How exactly a spirit was able to do that, I have no idea.

"That's way. The rising water level is damaging her family's territory, so they asked her to do it," Kirchie said.

"You have your own reasons for being here. This is tough," Guchie let out a sigh, keeping off his likely bruised leg.

"The spirit seems anger to boot. How about we ask why it's mad? Maybe we can fix the problem, and deal with two birds with one stone," I say. At this point, that option was our best choice.

It didn't take us long to return to the place where we had last seen the Water Spirit. Of course, whenever we got close, Louise seemed to fall asleep. I wonder if that was some side effect of the Spirit's Tear. Shame I wouldn't be able experiment with it. Then again, that's more up Leo's alley, anyway. The spirit quickly took form, shimmering back into it's giant, watery copy of Montmorency.

"Water Spirit! Why are you trying to flood the lake?" I question after it took shape. "It's causing trouble and hurting people."

"Because one of you folk abducted the treasure that we were guarding," the spirit said. That was interesting.

"A treasure?" I ask, trying to get more information out of it.

"We can only exist in water. Therefore, should we fill this entire world with water, we will someday have the treasure back in our hands," it stated. That was one long term plan. Though, it was a spirit, so it was likely that didn't think of that type of plan as such. The longer one lives, how it perceives time is different than something with a shorter life.

"I'll bring the stolen treasure back to you," I looked it square where it's eyes would be. "What's the name of the treasure?" Three of the four, Kirchie, Guchie, and Montmorency looked at me in shock.

"That's easier said than," Kirchie started, before the spirit interrupted her.

"Andvari's Ring. A ring that has spent much time with us," it stated. So it was a ring. At least it was something simply. Unfortunately, easy to hide as well.

"Andvari. I've heard of that," Montmorency whispered. Well, her family did have a pact with the spirit, so that wasn't surprising. "I think it was a magic item that grants artificial souls." A ring that grants artificial souls? That sounds like… crap.

"That sounds like necromancy," I mutter to myself. Kirchie looked at me in alarm, before turning to the spirit.

"What kind of person stole it?" she demanded. Oh, boy, this could be trouble. Then again, a name would be nice. A place to start, anyway.

"One of the individuals was called Cromwell. We know nothing else," The spirit said. A name. How common was Cromwell? First or last name? Was he even in the country anymore? And why does he want a ring that allows someone to use glorified necromancy? For nothing good, no doubt.

"All right then. Find this Cromwell guy, cut through whatever amount of zombies he puts in my way, get the ring and return it to you," I say, grinning slightly. Undead, eh. I had an answer for that. I had a really good answer for that. Guchie suddenly placed his hand on my shoulder.

"You should give it up. Who would believe the promise of someone who randomly showed up, and only just meet," he said. Well, when you put it that way, it sounded ridiculous.

"Are you Gandalfr?" the spirit suddenly asked. I paused, taking a quite peek back at Louise, who was still asleep. I was about to answer, but Derf beat me to it.

"Yes, she is Gandalfr," the blade said, popping out of my sheath quickly.

"Derf!" I snapped, somewhat annoyed. This time, even Tabitha's eyebrow raised.

"What? The Water Spirit asked," he stated.

"Otnsay nisay ntfrosay fosay erothsay," I said in pig latin. Hopefully the sword remembered the code. Or what I had taught him about pig latin.

"What does that even mean?" Derf asked. Nope. That was to much to hope for.

"It's pig latin. Not in front of others, remember?" I sigh. "Well, since that's out of the bag, yes, I am. What do you need me to do?"

"We would want proof," the Water Spirit said, "show use the weapon made of dark water, with the ability to strengthen magic, and we shall agree to let you search for our artifact." I frowned. Weapon made of dark water? Empowering magic?

"Do you know what the Water Spirit is talking about?" Montmorency asked. "I've never heard of anything that can increase the strength of mages like that." Wait, something.

"The Well!" I shouted. The Well of Eternity! Those around me gave me a confused look.

"The Scepter of Azshara. Forged from the waters of the Well of Eternity, a font of pure magic, by the Queen of the Kaldorei," I said, as Derf's form began to change and split apart, forming a mace in my right hand, and a shield that placed itself on my left arm. It was solid in places, but underneath, inky black water surged, spiraling like a small whirlpool.

"Something considered taboo by her people, but her actions saved some of it from the taint of the Burning Legion," I finished, as the dark liquid formed encircled me, forming armor made of interlinking chains.

"Very well," the spirit said, as a small vial floated through the air. Guchie caught it carefully.

"Why?" he said, likely for all of them, if their shock was any indication.

"Gandalfr kept oath with us in the distant past. If it is Gandalfr, it is worth believing, and she has proven herself Gandalfr," the spirit stated.

"Gandalfr? What is that?" the voice was Kirchie this time. Oh boy.

"I've found a few loss translations. Means either 'Shield of God' or 'Left Hand of God'. Depends on who you ask," I said, getting even more looks of confusion. "Water Spirit. Is it possible for you to return the water levels to normal? I'll find your ring as soon as I am able."

"We shall do as promised," the spirit said, before finally departing.

"Ok, what exactly did you mean?" Montmorency demanded.

"Yeah. I'm quite curious myself," Kirchie said, crossing her arms.

"Fine," I sighed. "But what I tell you stays here, got it. I find out that any of you have run your lips off about this, I will sew them shut. And do not tell Louise. It's safer that way. Understand?" My voice was low and menacing, which was the point. The four nodded.

"Ok. I'll warn you now. What I'm about to tell you is going to sound crazy. And if I find out any of you breath a word of these," I threatened, "but guess I owe you four an explanation."

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*Meanwhile, on Earth*

P.O.V. Third Person

Leo let out a sigh. He had promised Isabella he wouldn't do anything stupid. But something just wasn't right. About any of it! The "Gandalfr" runes. The weapons! Nothing made sense! How was it possible for a world that had no knowledge of Earth or Azeroth to have such obvious connections! It meant there was a missing piece of the puzzle. And Isabella didn't care! She was more worried about Louise and her "void" magic than anything else at the moment. Nothing fit together and likely, that meant a fight was coming. In that regard, Leo wasn't as worried. Isabella was smart in that area, and these runes gave her a bonus. But the other things, he was. The implications of such. Someone had to come up with the idea. And that person knew every, single, artifact weapon. The only person who knew that type of information is someone from Earth, which, at the moment, would need a lot of time travel to explain.

Which left the second, far more horrifying option. Someone from Azeroth. An unknown. Likely someone with an agenda. Seeing as both artifacts that were 'good' and 'bad' had been accounted for, it made the situation impartial at best, or a disguise at worst. And that's just it. He didn't know. Isabella didn't know. Nobody knew exactly what they might be up against. If this unknown was an enemy for friend. Knowing Azeroth, this unknown was likely an enemy And if that's the case, Leo wanted to be ready to. But he wasn't a fighter. That was Isabella, with her temper and strength. But he wasn't going to let her do it alone. Even the strongest can be brought down with numbers and numbers alone.

Which lead him to the device that in front of him. Leo made it, yes, but had no idea what it would do. He knew what it was supposed to do, but whether it would work like he needed it to was something different entirely. He let out a sigh.

"You know what, for science and friends," he pressed the button on the side of the box.

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And that's the end of that. Somewhat sad that I didn't get to finish the arc, but it wasn't that good. I'll learn from that mistake. And hopefully learn to write better fight scenes while I'm at it. We have about a chapter's worth of training before the next arc really kicks into high gear. Finally I have an actual reason to show off Isabella's martial arts.

Besides setting up the ring, and the first appearance of a certain weapon, not much really happens. Well, besides Guchie, Kirche, Tabitha, and Montmorency being in on the secret (whether they believe it or not at the moment though will be up debate). We also get a peek into what Leo has been up to. Louise under the effects of the love potion was not exactly easy to write (though I will enjoy how she reacts next chapter). I'm also so sorry for what is to be the worst pig latin ever.

Hopefully you all enjoyed, and I hope to see you next time. Here is to the pre-patch being on the 19th!


	14. Hand to Hand

It's Review answering time!

Boyzillla: So I'm not the only one that thinks that. Even though I did make up the Scepter's secret artifact ability (I'm not even sure anyone has discovered it yet either. Either way, it does fit the weapon's lore, with it being made from the water's of the Well of Eternity). This isn't the first change, and it will be far from the last.

Now on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Louise

"I'm going to kill her! That was the most embarrassing moment of my life!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, pacing around the room. Why did I do all of those things? Why? Oh right. It was that love potion.

"So much for a more tempered reaction," my familiar sighed. I groaned. Had I really said all those things to her face?

"What do you mean, 'more tempered reaction'," I snapped, crossing my arms. Sometimes I never understood her. How was she so calm?

"I'm not saying that you shouldn't be mad. If I'd drank one of those things, I would be just angry as you are," she crossed her arms, "I only expected the cure to come with amnesia or something that would take care of any lingering resentment."

"I don't see how that could happen," I huff. I'm certain Isabell rolled her eyes before sitting down.

"Just make sure I don't have to end up hiding any bodies," she joked, before her eyes widened in alarm. "That's not good." I paused. Normally, the joke would have sent me on another tirade, but her voice worried me.

"What's not good?" I ask, taking a step forward. My familiar's fingers flew across her device in alarm.

"Nothing much. Besides everyone one Earth that was eighteen and under having nightmares!" I sensed a bit of fear in her voice as she spoke.

"Did you have one?" I ask. Was that something even possible? An entire world suffering from nightmares at the same time? No spell in existence had that level of power!

"No. It's just people who on Earth. Still, just about everything's been shut down until they discover the cause," my familiar's eyes flew across the screen.

"And that might be?" I question. I doubt they had anything, but the least I could do was be concerned.

"Some people have written it off as mass hysteria on a mass scale, but there are a few problems with that," she said, looking up. "And of course, I don't expect magic to even be an issue, either. Right now, it just seems to be stupid luck creating…"

"Something impossible," I finished for her, crossing my arms again. What type of explanation was there for something like this? Her eyebrows furrowed in annoyance.

"The only other potential explanation for this may not even exist on Earth, and even if it does, it still doesn't explain why it only targeted people eighteen and under," Isabell sighed, rubbing the space between her eyebrows. That was curious.

"And that other potential explanation is?" I ask, trying to get as much information out of her as possible.

"The Emerald Dream. Or, in this case, the Emerald Nightmare," she frowned, clearly thinking. The Emerald Dream? That was something new.

"The Emerald Dream? What exactly is that?" This was starting to get a bit annoying. And why did it have a Nightmare?

"The Emerald Dream" Isabell let out a sigh. "How do I put this? It's a world's blueprint. It's a multi-layer copy, with each layer being a different point in time. The more layers you go down, the closer you get to the original. It's what the world was like before sentient life, human's being an example, where around."

"And what about the Nightmare?" I ask. This was extremely curious. I'd never heard of such a thing before.

"The Emerald Nightmare is a corrupted version of the Emerald Dream. Even if Earth had either one, it doesn't explain why it targeted such a small number of people, statistically speaking," My familiar was clearly not happy about the matter.

"So it's not that?" I pause. If it existed, what else could it be? But how could such a thing exist? It almost made it sound like it was designed.

"I don't know," Isabell sighed. "The Nightmare grabs hold of all it can get, and keeps them there. And we don't know if an Emerald Dream or Nightmare even exists on Earth." Ok, the wording was starting to worry me a bit.

"What do you mean by 'on Earth'? Is there an 'Emerald Dream' here or something?" My familiar was caught off guard by my question, suddenly looking up in alarm, before rubbing her forehead.

"Yes, there is an Emerald Dream here, and before you ask, no, I don't think it's going to be corrupted," she stated, as I crossed my arms.

"And how exactly does one of these Emerald Dream's become corrupted, anyway?" Why was Isabell acting like this wasn't a big deal? More importantly, how did she know?

"Because, that requires an Old God, and from what I saw during my trip in it, those things are all dead," my familiar snapped. The statement took me off guard. I guess that would explain how she knew about it. But one of these 'Old Gods'? Again? Why did those keep coming up? For things she claimed to exist only in one of her games, she brought them up a lot. But why did she say all dead? That would imply that they actually existed.

"So do these things exist or not?" I huff, in annoyance. My familiar let out a sigh of frustration.

"They do. But here, they are no longer an issue," she stated, rubbing her head.

"What do you mean, 'no longer an issue'?" I snapped. What's with all the crypticness? Is she trying to hide something?

"They got blown up," was her response. Fine. I'm done with the asking game. She'll have to figure it out herself. "Besides, I found out something new about one of my weapons." The statement was a poor attempt at deflection, but it get my attention. Curious.

"So? What is it?" I asked, deciding to take the bait. Better than the current conversation about non existent horror beings.

"Apparently, it's supposed to increase the power of mage's whenever they are close enough," I didn't need to see her face to know that my familiar was grinning like mad.

"Didn't you say my problem was that I had too much power? I fail to see how this helps anything," I shoot her a stern look. This sounded like a terrible idea. Isabell shrugged.

"I'm just in the mood to see something explode".

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P.O.V. Isabella

"This looks like a good spot," I grinned. We were far enough away from the school, so there wouldn't be any issues. Normally we would have to enter the forest anyway, if only to avoid getting students involved in Louise's practice.

"You know, I still think this is a bad idea," Louise sighed. I resisted the urge to groan. Personally, this idea had been in my mind since last night. Plus, I needed to relieve some stress. Of course I was concerned about what had happened on Earth. These nightmares were certainly not natural.

And that was a major problem. The world had in part willing shut down, for the time being. Children that had been barely able to sleep, and what sleep they did get seemed to be filled with horror. For older children, the only issue was sleep deprivation. But for younger ones? It wasn't just them not operating at full capacity. Their parents also were just as tired as they were.

How such an event could happen was beyond me. Magic couldn't really offer an explanation, nor was the even natural. It was possible that someone made a nightmare virus of sorts, but that still didn't explain why it only targeted one group of people on a global scale. This was squarely beyond the power of conventional science.

Unless Leo had something to do with it. I had to bite back a sigh. If, the key word being if, Leo had something to do with this mess, I wasn't going to be happy. He is one of my closest friends, and had been quite vocal in his concerns about my abilities. Where everyone else saw just luck, he saw a reason to be concerned. I had told him many times that I was fine, and could take care of myself, but he was still a friend concerned about my well being. If he was involved, it would be interesting to see how he tried to spin it, anyway.

"So, what is this weapon called?" Louise asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"The Scepter of Azshara," I grinned slightly. Out of all the weapons to have some type of secret power, this one made the most sense. After all, it was made from the waters of the Well of Eternity.

"I'm going to agree with Louise on this one, parter. This sounds like a bad idea," Derf said, popping out of his sheath.

"Relax. The Scepter is a defensive and healing artifact in the first place. If something goes wrong, I have a few answers for it," I sighed. I fully unsheathed Derf, beginning the transformation. It was different than the last time I had used an artifact with a shield. Considering Truthguard's shield was also the sheath for it's blade, this made sense. In this case, the shield was just as much part of the artifact, but still different.

Nightmare black water surged forth, taking the form of the mace and shield. The outer layer solidified, turning into a durable, glass like substance, with the water still swirling inside. Crystialian water then encased my body, taking the form of interlinking chains that covered me head to toe.

"That was impressive," Louise said, looking at the armor. I shrugged. These transformations had always been flashier than I liked. Though flashiness was the point, I suppose. I loved watching transformations as a child, but being on the receiving end left a bit to be desired. At least it didn't have sparkles and an activation phrase. I would die from embarrassment if that was the case.

"Ok, let's give this a try, shall we?" I focus, conjuring a defensive totem, just in case something went wrong. Louise pulled out her wand nervously. She started to chant, before releasing the spell.

Only for nothing to happen. Well that was underwelling. I wonder why. Louise tried again, before growling in annoyance.

"Why is this not working!" She snapped, flicking her wand again.

"Maybe your magic is shutting itself off? Or the end result of the spell is simply too much, so it won't cast?" I suggested. A safety shut off switch for magic? Did that even work?

"This was a waste of time," she huffed, clearly frustrated. Not that I blamed her. To Louise, her magic was still a mystery, and a frustrating one at that.

"At least we got to stretch our legs a little. It's not like we have that much to do, anyway," I sighed, trying to look on the bright side.

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P.O.V. Thrid Person

Flip. Flip. Flip. The figure placed another book on the ever growing pile of ones that didn't have the information she was looking for. History books, lists of dangerous and rare artifacts, even stories told to children lacked any mention to this 'Well of Eternity'. Nor was there any mention of these 'Kaldorei'.

Exactly like Isabella had told them. If there was anything that was proof to Louise's' Familiars' crazy tale, it was that she acknowledge that anyone who did do any research was unlikely to find anything. Louise being a void mage was inconceivable, with any proof being coincidental at best.

Brimir, after all, was well recorded. The maker of the Summon Familiar ritual had power than no other held, both before his birth and after his death. While one would have to perform plenty of digging to find out what void magic was capable of, and even then, such books were few and far between. As such, the figure didn't have access to such pieces of information. The Church, on the other hand, was somewhat vague about The Founders abilities. While stating the Brimir was a God, it also presented him as a savior, rarely mentioning the army destroying power he possessed. As such, Brimir's most destructive spell, Explosion, had been partially lost.

Gandalfr was even more of an enigma than their master. The church wasn't specific on the matter, and for good reason. So vague, was the Church, in fact, that not even Gandalfr's gender was mentioned. However, ten thousand years of vagues caused some to wonder if the Gandalfr even existed. Gandalfr, as the legends went, could hold off armies while Brimir casted his magic. A warrior that could use any weapon they touched. However, not even the Church itself is fully aware of the additional powers given to Gandalfr. The first Gandalfr, an elf by the name of Sasha, was later given the additional ability to recreate other powerful weapons, so long has she a base to work with. Some of the these weapons allowed her to use magic, like her master could. Sasha herself willing limited the number of weapons she could use to ten, to allow her to specialize more with her weapons.

Gandalfr was one of the many familiars Brimir had. It wasn't alone in receiving its later modifications. Each of the four void familiars had a modification made to them allowing them to fight against Brimir's enemies. More accurately, the enemy worth fighting. Creatures that The Founder made sure the world forgot. Beings of horror and madness, wiped out by the destructive power of the void. The duo was destroyed by Brimir and his familiars in utter secret, before whatever remained of their broken bodies and spirits were sealed. Ideally, to never rise again.

However, those are secrets lost to time itself. No amount of research would ever bring those secrets to light. All the young girl knew was that Brimir was a powerful void mage, while Gandalfr could use any weapon they touched. Was there any proof that Isabella had done that? Outside of her own word, no, there wasn't. Even her use of the Staff of Destruction wasn't definitive proof. For all the figure knew, Isabella could have already known how to use that weapon. Lying didn't sound like something Isabella would do, but taking her desire to keep this a secret from Louise threw something into doubt. Louise would love to know why she wasn't able to cast spells normally. So why would her familiar try to keep the secret? More importantly, how was a familiar able to keep a secret from their master in the first place? Suddenly, the door creaked open, flooding the room with sunlight.

"Tabatha? What are you doing up?" A groggy Kirchie said from the doorway. She had hoped Tabatha didn't spend the entire night awake.

"Up all night," was the bluenettes response. Despite that, she was no closer to figuring out the answer. Was it true that Louise is a void mage, or was Isabella lying? Both things didn't seem likely. Kirchie frowned with concern. She was afraid of this. What Isabella had told all of them seemed impossible. But the way she spoke was serious, almost dangerously so. It was hard for her to wrap her head around her rival actually being that powerful.

"Found anything?" Krichie questioned, stepping into the library. The library was massive, even by taking into account the size of the manor. The bluenette simply shook her head. No, she had not found anything. Anything that could prove anything, anyway.

"Ok. Let's get something to eat. You need a break and some rest."

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P.O.V. Isabella

"Louise, this is a good idea and you know it," I crossed my arms in a huff. Whether I liked it or not, I wasn't always going to be there to protect her. But actually getting her to agree to that was apparently one half of the battle.

"Whether it's a good idea or not, I fail to see why it is needed," Louise crossed her arms back. At least she's talking up to me now. "Even if you are not, I still have my magic."

"And what happens when you lose your wand?" I sigh. Fantasy worlds always had different rules when it came to magic. In one, a mage could cast magic without a focus. This was not one of those worlds.

"That will never happen," Louise huffed, turning away from me. This mindset wasn't helping either. While Louise's confidence had grown, sometimes it borderlined on aragence.

"It will, Louise. Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst. There will come a moment where I'm not there to protect you, and I want you to be prepared," I reasoned, trying to appeal to both her logic and her emotions.

"Fine," the pinkette huffed, before turning around. "But why are you making me start with something so basic? Why not something worth the time, like a sword?"

"Because, for starters, a sword is pretty hard to conceal. If you have one, everyone who looks at you is going to know it," I grinned somewhat. That was the whole point of my knives. I could hide them and not many would be wiser. "If you train your body for combat, then you will always have a weapon nobody would expect."

"So, like your knives?" she questioned.

"Yes, kind of like my knives," I responded, noticing the verbal trap only after it was sprung.

"Then why don't you teach me about knives then?" Louise asked. I had been expecting this question to come up sooner rather than later. Still, it didn't mean I liked have the question asked. I held out my hand as Louise gave me a quizzical look.

"Look at my hand," I sternly ordered. Compared to what some people's hands looked like after being trained with knives, mine were in pretty ok shape. Still didn't stop my hands from sporting a variety of scratches and scars, all of them inflected by my knives. Some had started to fade, but I still accidently cut myself from time to time.

"Those cuts?" she questioned. Clearly, it was the first time she had noticed them. I never really drew attention to them, so it was understandable. "How did you get them?"

"I got them," I said, pulling out my butterfly knife for emphasis, "By not being careful enough with these things." I twirled the blade around in my hand.

"Until I'm certain you can use them safely and responsibly, these knives are hands off. You could get yourself hurt, or worse," I ordered flattly. I may be a little bit hypocritical talking to her about knives and safety, given what I wanted to have earlier today, but I still needed to get the point across.

"Fine," Louise huffed, "What do you want me to do?" She was listening.

"I need you to punch my hand," I said, holding out my flat palm. Louise looked at me like I'd lost my mind.

"What?" was her response. Not that I blame her. It sounded kind of stupid saying that aloud.

"I said, I need," that was as far as I got before Louise interrupted me.

"I know what you said, but why?" Louise demanded, the look are her face showing annoyance.

"If you do, I can figure out what you might be doing wrong, and then I'll be able to help you fix it," I reasoned. Louise sighed, before clenching her fist, throwing her punch at my palm, resulting in an audible pop and a yelp.

Louise hissed in pain, clutching her thumb. I figured that. If something popped, it would be either the thumb, or the knuckles. I knelt down, showing her my own clenched fist.

"Don't stick out you thumb. Keep it on underside of your hand," I explained, moving Louise's fingers myself to make sure she felt what I wanted her to do. "Also, make sure to hit with the first two knuckles." I moved my fingers over the two bumps. Louise, despite the blush on her face, nodded, clearly absorbing the knowledge like a sponge.

"Again," I ordered. This time, the blow was a solid hit, one that I felt reverberate up my arm. Despite her small frame, Louise had plenty of strength. Her punches weren't exactly fast, and her form was definitely going to need some work, but those two things could be fixed by practice.

"Didn't you say you knew kicks?" Louise asked, as her fist made contact with my palm again.

"Kicks? Louise, if I'm going to teach you that, you would need a pair of pants," I said. Kicking with a skirt? Punching in that uniform of hers was a stretch. Something more loose fitting would be best. Not baggy, but something looser than a school uniform.

"Why?" Louise questioned, clearly more focused on the task at hand rather than what was being hinted at. I paused. How exactly do you word something like that? Without it sounding weird or perverted?

"Kicks usually involve some type of horizontal or vertical stretching," I hinted, hoping to that Louise would take it on her own. I waited a few moments, and sadly she wasn't getting it. "It gives people a look at your undergarments." I put as bluntly and politely as possible. Louise's blows stopped, only for me to get punched straight in the arm. I let out a low hiss of pain. That was certainly going to bruise.

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After I managed to wrestle the energy out of an extremely angry Louise, we both decided that rest was a good idea. Louise had made progress, but she had a ways to go before I actually spared with her.

Just as I was about to get changed, a there was a loud knock, coming from the window of all things. I shoot Louise a confused look, eyebrow raised, only to get a look that likely mimicked my own. I decided to approach carefully, before opening the window. Revealing a clearly troubled Princess. That was, well, a surprise, and I wasn't entirely sure how to react.

"Hello Princess. What exactly can I do for you?" I ask, trying to retain some form of grace from finding the Princess herself on a window ledge on a massive tower. The look I got in response was a grim one.

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And that's a wrap! This would have been done earlier, but the charger for my laptop broke, so I was set back a few days, and it took me awhile to find a replacement. And we are finally off to Albion in the next chapter, and the story is getting close to end of the first season! Of course, I'm looking forward to exactly what will be happening in the coming chapters. I also had no real ideas for a chapter title. Sorry if this one is really bad.

And this is the longest original content chapter I've ever written! Remember Isabella's supposed martial arts training that hasn't been brought up since chapter three? Yeah, so do I. After eleven chapters of never actually hearing about it (artifact's, am I right?), I finally brought it up. I'm hoping to integrate it with her fighting style when she isn't using her artifact weapons.

And we also have a hint at what Leo has done. Well, a major unintended side effect to something that he didn't mean to have happen. The only thing that went his way on that one was the end result. Thanks to Tabitha, I was also able to get some third person information placed in exactly what Brimir did, and what he was fighting. It still doesn't explain why he knows about Azeroth's artifacts in the first place (in due time), but all void familiar's have been given an upgrade. Some are just more impressive than others, but they are all connected in some way to their original power.

Well, that's all for now. I hope you enjoyed and see you next time!


	15. Warglaives

It's review answering time!

Boyzilla: Leo messed up big time. He kind of changed the rules of how the Earth actually works. The only thing fixing that is time. Not much time though (for the majority of people). What exactly Leo pulled will be covered later.

TheDisturbedDragon: A level 80 paladin can beat a battered C'thun that has been sealed away twice and is currently imprisoned. With the full extent of it's power cut off. It took one of the Titan's themselves to actually kill one of the Old Gods, abetely, it was the strongest of the four on Azeroth. If Isabella fights any Old God alone, she's going to get wrecked. Badly. Whether it is chained or unchained will have little effect on the outcome. Thankfully, Brimir dealt with that some time ago.

Now let's move on this the show!

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' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

P.O,V. Isabella

"Princess?" was Louise's immediate gasp, before running over to her friend. "What is the matter? You're here alone, and so late at night." Louise was nearly in a panic, and justifiably so. For Hentrietta to be here, and as late as it was, meant nothing but trouble. Especially since it seems she came without any type of escort. Someone was going to be catching flack for this.

Hentrietta grabbed both of Louise's hands, trying to calm her. "I have an urgent request to make of you two in secret," the princess said, calmly. I bit back a frown. This was certainly not good. While her voice was calm, her face betrayed her worry. Was there an invasion of some sort? No, that wouldn't be it. She was asking for something to be done in secret.

Louise and I both bowed. While everyone knew it wasn't exactly necessary, it would be best to keep up appearances, just encase of prying eyes. I did have my own plan for that, however.

"I have decided to marry into a family in Germania," the princess began. Germania? Wasn't that a nation to the north? And wasn't that were Kirchie came from? Louise had explained the feud between her own family and Kirchie's, and it would be funny to see both houses having to play nice. Louise wasn't too happy about the statement though.

"What did you say?" Louise asked, a degree of concern and panic in her voice. "Of all things, the country of all those savage upstart nobles?" I had to bite back a sigh. As my grasp of the written language improved, the more I was beginning to notice the similarities between my world and this world. Including that Halkeginia could be little more than a parody of Europe. Well, excluding several smaller countries, anyway. Which meant politics might have be a bit similar.

"It cannot be helped," Hentrietta said, turning her head to the side. "To protect our small country of Tristain, we need a strong alliance with Germinia." She was willing to put her own well being and happiness on the line in exchange for the safety of her people. For someone so young, it was extremely respectable. I bit back on my tongue to keep myself from speaking. As admirable as it was, I found it truly disgusting for someone to hold marriage as the only way to solidify an alliance.

"Even if it's for our country, to face such a hardship," Louise mourned. I frowned slightly. It's not like there was much I could do in this situation, as much as I wanted to.

"I am the princess of Tristain," the purplenette stated, trying to sound reassuring. "I do not mind sacrificing myself for the sake of the country." Well, officially, I have respect for her. She was willing to put the country, and therefore, her people, before her own wants and desires. I don't think many people ever did learn that lesson.

"However, there is one thing that I must do before that," the princess stood up, her voice turning grim. This didn't sound good. Especially since we were the only people she had talked to about this.

"Princess! If there is anything that I can do, please tell me to do so!" Louise borderline shouted. Of course, she was looking before she leaped again. Of course, Louise was loyal, so I wasn't surprised. Only concerned.

"Thank you, Louise Francoise," Hentrietta turned around from her place at the window. "I would like you to retrieve a certain item." Ok? We are already being vague about what it is we are getting. That didn't sound good.

"A certain item?" Louise asked, almost reading my mind. Going to need a bit more than that before we can find the thing.

"A letter that I had sent to Prince Wales in Albion," the princess said, sadness nearly obvious in her voice. Why would a letter be so important? Unless it was a love letter. And nobody would take an old love letter seriously, right?

"Albion?" was Louise's simple gasp. I frowned. If she clearly had strong ties to Albion, why would she need to politically marry into Germinia? Something didn't add up. Unless the situation was bad in Albion, there was no need for this mission.

"If the world finds out about that letter, this engagement will be called off," Hentrietta went on. My frown grew. Louise faintly whispered something, and while I couldn't make out the words, the worry was all too clear.

"Albion is currently politically unstable, and in a dangerous situation right now," the princess continued. That would explain both problems. But why the instability? Something had to be happening, right?

"I hear the nobles started a coup d'etat, and the royal family is about to fall from their rein," Louise said. And she hadn't mentioned this before? Albion though? What exactly was Albion meant to be? Germinia might have similarities to Germany, and what I had heard about Romalia made it sound like Italy to a degree. So what could be Albion? But that would explain why the letter was needed.

"I'm sorry, for even asking such a thing from a close friend," the princess's body began to shake. She was sobbing. The stress of this whole thing had finally broke. All of it. I couldn't even imagine the weight she was under. Louise gasped, running to her friends side. I pulled myself up as well. I would have gone over to her as well, but I heard something from in the hall.

Someone that followed the princess, prephase? A spy? I tuned out Louise and Hentrietta's conversation. I already knew the outcome of the that. Louise would volunteer, and I would go with, for protection, naturally. The door began to slowly creep open. I put my hand into my pocket, quickly grabbing one of my knives. The door suddenly opened as I spun around, only just noticing the eavesdropper was Guchie himself. Still didn't stop me from throwing it though, but I did intend to miss.

Louise and Hentrietta only noticed the newcomer when my knife hit the other end of the hall, embedding itself in the wall with a loud crack. Guchie had clearly not expected a knife to go flying past his head, if his paled and shocked face was anything to go by.

"This would be in your arm right now if I hadn't realized it was you, Guchie," I said as I walked across the hall, pulling my knife free.

"Guchie!" was Louise shout, both in annoyance and shock. Great. This adds another layer to an already pretty large problem. The larger the group, the harder it would be to move around in hostile territory undetected. Guchie and Louise both weren't exactly experienced with this type of thing. A single mistake could mean failure, and that wasn't an option.

"I have heard everything," Guchie finally recovered, taking a knee. I let out a sigh. Of course he did. That's kind of why I threw the knife at him! Couldn't he just mind his own business! This had nothing to do with him.

"Weren't you just eavesdropping?" Louise snapped. Not that I blame her. I was pretty annoyed too, and if the princess wasn't in the room, I would be giving him a talk about privacy. And why you shouldn't eavesdrop!

"Please ask me, Guchie de Grammont, anything you wish," Guchie said, clearly not caring about what he was getting himself into. I shoot him an annoyed death glare.

"Grammont?" Hentrietta questioned. Oh don't tell me that military family background wasn't some sort of joke. "Then you must be General Grammont's,"

"I am his son," he said, cutting the princess off. Louise's eye had begun to develop a twitch, likely due to her to her restrained anger. I was going to vent after this as well. No way I was going to straight to bed after this.

"You will be of service to me as well?" Hentrietta asked, looking down at him.

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My kick landed against the training dummy with a solid crunch. I pushed off the target, creating distance before rushing back in, my punch's landing around it's face. I follow with knee straight to it's gut. I dart back, landing a spinning hook kick on the side of it's head. I brought the foot down, before whipping off the sweat from my brow.

Guchie was really tagging along. That was just great. I was beating him with nothing more than a knife. How much help did he think he was going to be, anyway? Or was this simply a pride thing? It better not. I'm already going to be watching over Louise. I don't need to be babysitting someone else.

A soft "uh" broke me out of my thoughts. I turned around, face flushed slightly red due to the exercise, as more sweat gathered on my brow. It was Siesta. That was a surprise.

"Hey, Siesta. What are you doing out this late?" I ask, rubbing the back of my head. While I normally practiced in a dojo, I hadn't been expecting anyone to be watching me.

"I heard you were back, and I wanted to ask how Louise was doing," Siesta said. If it wasn't for her, odds are, I never would have figured out what was wrong. Still, it was strange that she came to me first, rather than ask Louise herself. Then again, I wasn't sure if the two knew each other or not.

"She's doing better, thanks to you," I said, causing her face to flush a slight red before turning away. Was she not used to signs of gratitude?

"I didn't do anything," she said, clearly flustered, as I let out a sigh. I pinched my nose.

"You did far more than you're giving yourself credit for. If it wasn't for you, I'd still have Louise attached to my arm," I shuttered at the thought. Good thing we got that squared up and boxed away. I certainly wouldn't like explaining that to her best friend. Or just about anyone.

"Are you sure?" Siesta questioned, looking at me in the eyes.

"Certainly," I grin. "After all, knowledge is power, and without you, I wouldn't of had the knowledge, or the power, to fix the problem." The statement was true. Yes, I am strong, but that strength never would have fixed the problem alone. Without knowledge, I wouldn't have gotten anywhere. Louise would still be under the effects of a love potion, and everything would be messed up.

"Thank you," Siesta started to bow, only to stop herself. "Have a good night!" she said happily.

"You was well!" I responded, before losing myself in my thoughts. I didn't like the situation at present. I was going in blind, into a situation I knew next to nothing about. While my reading skills had become pretty close to par, I had no idea on where to find anything. I needed things like maps, 'recent' news (news would hardly be recent, and while under normal circumstances I could pick up rumors, it was summer), and of course, key figures. Like exactly who was leading this little revolution. Maybe I should talk with Professor Colbert in the morning.

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"So you want to know more about the revolution in Albion?" Professor Colbert voice was clearly concerned. Hopefully, I didn't give too much away, but he was very smart. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that he focused on his experiments. The place was a mess, Leo didn't exaggerate that much. In fact, it may have gotten worse. Machine parts covered whatever surface wasn't covered by vials of liquid.

"Sadly, I don't know much about what is happening," he said, still frowning slightly. I repressed a frown of my own. I knew it was a long shot, but it still didn't stop me from feeling disappointed.

"Don't worry about it. Is there anything about Albion you can tell me, anyway?" I ask. Hopefully, I could get some new information out of this. Anything would be useful at this point.

"Besides the country's long standing alliance with Tristain, and it being the world's only floating island, there isn't really that much to tell," the professor said. Wait, floating island? That's some pretty impressive, actually. Dalaran was a floating city, and that took a lot of power. A floating island was even more impressive.

Still, that wasn't exactly good. No easy retreat options if things go south … and wait a minute. He said a floating island. Germinia was likely based on Germany. Tristain, if names were any detal, likely would be France. Albion was an island, like Britain. Albion was in the middle of a revolution, like Britain had been more than a few points in the past. And one of those revolutions had a mastermind general by the name of Oliver Cromwell. The guy that stole the ring that I need to go after was also named Cromwell. The odds of him being involved in this revolution? Pretty high, if history is anything to go by! This mission wasn't going to be fun.

"Isabella?" Professor Colbert snapped his fingers in front of my face. "Are you ok?" The honest answer to that was no, no I was not ok. This mission wasn't looking that good now. Was it even smart to bring Louise along for this. Was it safe for anyone? Should I just use one of my artifacts and wing it myself? No, then I would have two pursuers. Not only that, Louise was going to be the only one knowing where we were actually going.

"Sorry, just thinking," I lied, hoping he would buy it. I took an unwanted sniff of the air. While properly bottled, the lingering smell was annoying. One of which had a strange degree of familiarity to it. Didn't Leo say something about Professor Colbert having gasoline? What did he call it? Dragon's blood? I took a look around the room, finally locating the vial of yellow liquid.

"So, what's with that dragon's blood, anyway?" I said in a joking manor. The professor's eyes perked up almost instantly.

"So you have heard about it," he said, clearly overjoyed. I may have underestimated how excited he was about the subject.

"The basics. The disappearing and mysterious dragons, at the least," I placed sarcasm on dragons. If what Leo said was true, than those 'dragons' were little more than airplanes.

"Yes, one disappeared, and the other fell somewhere," he said. "However, our mutual acquaintance has revealed a few pieces of the puzzle." I had to grin at that.

"That dragons aren't dragons at all, and the blood nothing more than fuel," I said, crossing my arms. I let out a bit of a laugh. I came to talk about politics, but I need up taking about old war birds. Funny how that works. What was he going to do, chase down the one the fell?

"Thanks for the help," I said, finally exiting the small workshop.

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P.O.V. Third

"Is she gone?" A voice asked from one of the many storage closets. The professor let out a sigh. Very little of the day had gone how he had wanted it to. It started with Leo's very sudden and unannounced appearance. Just when he was about to start getting answers out of the young adult, Isabella had shown up, strangely driving her best friend into hiding. He had hoped that she curious about why her friend was, but instead, she was interested in the revolution in Albion, something that the aging professor figured she would never learn about.

To say the least, Professor Colbert wasn't amused, and was confused. Why was Leo hiding from Isabella, and why wasn't she aware of her friends presence? Or was it she simply didn't care? That seemed unlikely. Just as unlikely as Isabella not knowing Leo was here. How could she not? Nothing seems to add up.

"Yes," the man finally sighed. Why exactly was he the one dealing with this? The door creaked open, revealing a sweat covered Leo, who was holding his chest.

"Thank you," Leo said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. Professor Colbert sighed.

"You can thank me by explaining why you are hiding from your best friend," he said, staring straight at Leo. Leo frowned. What exactly did he do wrong? Besides that fantastic, first class screw up.

"Besides me messing up, big time?" he said, crossing his arms, "the fact that I shouldn't be here being the most prominent." Professor Colbert raised an eyebrow. Shouldn't be here? That was curious. He was here, so why shouldn't he be? Didn't Isabella fix the accidental summoning problem? And if she hadn't, wouldn't she be the first person to go to for an easy fix? Not only that, this messing up was pretty vague as well. It was pretty clear some type of mistake was made, but what exactly was it?

"Would you care to give more information about that?" the professor asked quizzically. It was Leo's turn to sigh. Only if it was that simple. Leo himself wasn't entirely sure of what he had managed to accomplish. Ok, that wasn't entirely true. He understood it somewhat, which was impossible, because he was nowhere close to accomplishing what he meant to do. Leo wasn't sure where the knowledge was coming from, either. Neither was the understanding, which he had even less of.

"It's hard enough to explain already. I might as well just show you," Leo began focusing, reaching inward, with Professor Colbert's face going from confused to worried.

"That is certainly interesting," he said. Truly, no other words would work at describing what just happened. If the professor's understanding of Earth was correct, then what he was observing is an impossibility. Yet, here it was, staring him in the face.

"You don't even know the half of it."

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P.O.V. Isabella

I let out a stretching yawn. While I didn't get exactly what I had wanted to know, it didn't stop me from spending the rest of the day how I needed to. Practicing for the coming storm. Guchie and Louise didn't do much of that. Ok, Louise threw around a few explosions, but that was about it. Just because they weren't going to be taking this as seriously as they should, doesn't mean I wasn't.

Of course, that left me as the most drained out of the group, and I was certainly going to spend as much time asleep as possible. Such is life, I suppose. Louise finally seemed uneasy. Not that I blame her. Given the recent developments (which I hadn't informed her about), the feeling was similar. But if I visibly showed it, Louise would start getting even more worried, so it was best to force it down. It might be better to get some of this wait of her chest now, much rather than later.

"Nervous?" I asked, plopping down in one of the chairs. Louise shot me an incredulous look.

"No! Why would I be?" she snapped. I let out a sigh. That more or less just proved my suspicions.

"Louise, I think I know you pretty well," I smiled slightly. "It's perfectly fine to be nervous, especially about something this important." It ended up Louise's turn to let out a sigh.

"I know. But this is such an important job. Should I really be going through with this?" Louise said. Her worry and lack of confidence was back in spades.

"We've gone through plenty of crazy stuff before, right? We've captured a famous thief, exposed corruption, and punched hole's through dimensions! There is nothing we can't do!" I nearly shouted, striking a dramatic pose, fist in the air, using the chair to increase my height. "There is nothing we can't accomplish!" I would have gone on, if it wasn't for Louise starting to laugh.

"You know, if you want to make me feel better with a speech, you could have just pulled up one of Kamina's," she cackled. Wait, what? When did she start watching that?

"When did you start watching Gurren Lagann!" I shouted. Out of all the things, Gurren Lagann was likely to be one of the last things Louise would watch under her own free will.

"You act like I've seen much!" Louise grinned, clearly feeling better if she was being this open.

"All joking aside, I'm going too. I'll protect you," I said.

"I know you will," Louise softly grinned.

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"I wonder what's with all this fog?" Guchie asked as he pulled himself onto his horse.

"Guchie, I am on the phone," I snapped, annoyed, covering the mouth piece.

"Are you sure you aren't able to come?" my mom asked on the other end. My brother was still suffering from these nightmares, and Leo had been missing for around the same period of time. While less people have been under the effects each passing day, it didn't mean it was getting easier for those still affected.

"At the moment, no, I'm not. I'm tied down with things here," I sighed. At the very least, not everyone who was originally effected seemed to be suffering ill effects. But it number of people affected had only reduced by half over a two day period. It was pretty clear to the world that this wasn't a natural event. But it wasn't explainable either. It sounded like the problem was fixing itself.

"If things are still messed up I get back, I'll come take a look," I said with reluctance. My brother was a pain, but he was still my brother. Regardless of how much of a pain he could be, I still worried about him.

"Be safe. I love you," my mother whispered. I cracked a small smile.

"I love you to," I whispered back, before finally shutting off my phone. Yeah it's pretty clear the past couple of days haven't been going remotely like I how I'd expect. Nightmare's, secret missions, magical disappearing planes, love potions.

That was in the past however. I needed to stop worrying about what I couldn't control, and what I can. Change of clothes? Check. First aid kit? Check. Backup cell phone battery? Check. Knifes? I felt my boots. Check. Rather than my normal shoes, I decided to bring along some boots that I got as a gift. The very same gift giver had modified them too, giving the pair a place to hide knives. Why did he do that? He never actually told me, but I was thankful for the hidden firepower. I finally pulled on the black fingerless gloves I bought. Normally, I didn't take too well to gloves, but it was a bit of a necessity. Besides, I wasn't going to get white ones. They got dirty or stained, it was extremely apparent.

"Any idea when our guard is going to be showing up?" I asked. Apparently, it was something I had missed during my fuming.

"It's about time he would show up, I think," Louise said, looking around, gaze trying to pierce the fog. I had to grin. Good luck with that. I was about to climb up on my own horse as the ground in front of Louise's mount began to pile up. The ground erupted, revealing a massive mole.

"Verdandle!" Guchie shouted, quickly climbing off his horse to embrace the oversized creature. I decided to tune out the rest of what he was saying. Talk about clingy.

"Please tell me we are not bringing that thing with us," I said. Mole's usually didn't look like this. Or tent to get that massive. Don't even start me on it's eyes. The massive brown orbs would have fit on a creature of twice the size.

"We aren't," Louise said as she walked over. I let out a sigh of relief. The thing suddenly began to move, much to Guchie's confusion, it's oversized nose sniffing the air. It stopped in front of Louise for a few seconds, before tackling her.

"No!" Louise shouted in shock, desperately trying to keep the mole away from the ring. I let out a growl of annoyance, before grabbing the thing from behind, trying to pull it off Louise.

"I see, the ring," Guchie said, giving no inclination of helping. "Verdandle loves gems, especially ones that are valuable."

"That's nice and all, but how about some help!" I responded, pulling desperately at familiar. The thing simply refused to budge, and it was extremely heavy to boot.

"You've got to kidding! I won't stand for a mole eating the valuable ring the princess gave me!" Louise was fuming, trying to keep the ring away from the oversized mole, as I struggled to pull it off her. "Get this thing off me!"

"Working on it," I grit my teeth, pulling back with as much force as I could muster. What exactly was Guchie feeding this thing? Solid bricks? I let go to try a different approach, only to avoid being knocked back by a pillar of dirt. If this was karma for something, I didn't want to know what it was for. However, the mole received it's just deserts, being knocked backwards, landing a few feet away, belly up.

"Verdandle!" Guchie shooted, looking around for the attacker while I helped Louise back to her feet. The fluttering of feathers reached my ears, but I couldn't make out the source. This fog was being a pain.

"It's above us," I pointed out, not even bothering to unsheath Derf. What's up with this? To aim that type of shoot, the attacker would have had to see us, but we couldn't see the attacker. What gives? Slowly the fog began to part as something began to descend. I frowned. The massive creature set down. A griffon? If the shape of it's body was something to go by, it certainly was a griffon. I hadn't seen one of those before. Given the fact that Earth only had them in myth and legend (the same with dragons), not something I would normally expect to see either. Might as well embrace that everything that is myth on Earth, is reality here. For all I knew, manticores could be a thing to.

The man mounted on it was even more curious. His hair was quite long. Longer than Louise's, if my eyes weren't deceiving. It was also grey. The man didn't look that old, though most of his face was covered by his hat. Likely stress then?

"Who are you?" Guchie asked, brandishing his rose wand. I simply rolled my eyes and sighed. If he was really here for a fight, he would have attacked with other means, and actually attack us, much rather than the mole. The man finally pushed his hat up, revealing blue eyes.

"I am Wardes, leader of the Griffon Squad, ordered by Lady Henrietta to accompany you on this trip," the man, Wardes said. No dip on the Griffon Squad thing. He came in riding on a griffon! It's kind of obvious. Sending the leader of an entire squad? Isn't that a bit overkill? And he didn't say call Henrietta princess. Still, considering the mission, sending someone skilled was for the best.

"It's you!" Louise gasped suddenly. She knew him? I guess that shouldn't be that surprising, considering Louise is a noble, after all.

"Of the famous Magic Guard?" was Guchie's response. What was he? Some type of magical celebrity? I understood that he was high up.

"Louise," Wardes said simply, walking towards Louise, completely ignoring both Guchie and I (to be fair, I hadn't said a word), grabbing both of her hands. "Sorry to surprise you." Ok seriously, what was going on? He clearly knew Louise, but never once have I heard her mention him.

"I had thought that my fiancee was in trouble," he continued. Wait, what! Hold the phone! When was this?! I felt my protective side beginning to bubble up. He was in his late twenties at the earliest! She was sixteen!

"Seriously!" was the only response Guchie had, and it was shouted in my ear. I stayed quiet, trying to calm the inner frustration within me. Which was quickly reignited when he picked up bridal style.

"You are as light as ever! Just like a feather," he teased, his tone warm and friendly. It didn't stop me from protectively glare at him.

"It's been a while, Lord Wardes," Louise stammered, a slight flush on her cheeks. Like I had said, the last few days hadn't been mine. Why would the next few be any different?

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It took quite a while to finally arrive at our destination, which gave me plenty of time to think. Well, when my thoughts weren't interrupted by Guchie's babbling, and Louise and Wardes small talk. What was the conclusion of my thoughts?

I was pissed off, for starters. Which was of course, something not good, especially on a mission like this. It didn't help that I had grown quite protective of Louise during the time I've spent here. Wardes appearing out of nowhere threw me off. He was an unknown, but as far as I could tell, he cared for Louise, and from what I heard from his own mouth, the reason he took on this mission. But so far, it was I who pulled Louise up when she was down, it was I who helped her practice her magic, and it was I who was her support, her encouragement. So it wasn't just anger. It was jealousy as well.

Jealousy that I wasn't the only person that viewed her as being able to succeed? Why would I be jealous of something like that? It should make me happy that there are others that view Louise in a similar light. Or was it something else? This is annoying! Why couldn't things be simple?

"Oh, it's in sight now," Guchie said, leaning forward on his mount, "That is the port village, La Rochelle." Port village? In the mountains? Oh, right, Albion is a flying island. That actually makes sense then.

The village was quite beautiful, in it's own way. It's streets and houses had been carved into the mountainside with extreme precision.

"All the buildings here are carved out of one bolder. Thanks to Square-class mages specializing in earth magic, it's a work of art," Guchie boasted gleefully. I rolled my eyes. While it was great to look at, it took magic to make.

"I'll have to show you Machu Picchu sometime then, or the Nasca Lines. They blow this away, and didn't need magic to make," I smirked, watching him look at me in alarm. So easy to get a rise out of him.

It didn't take long after that to arrive at the inn we were staying at, though both Guchie and I spent the time arguing over which was better, the magically made La Rochelle, or the hidden city of Machu Picchu. I think we managed to somewhat annoy both our compatriots with our argument. Still it was refreshing to take my mind of things.

"We will spend the night here, and depart tomorrow in the evening," Wardes said as he helped Louise off his griffon. The thing was nearly twice the size the horse I was riding. "Understood?"

"Understood," I said as I slipped off the saddle, hiding my groan in pain. We were riding for most of the day, and only now did the soreness become apparent.

"Understood, Mister Wardes!" Guchie said, going straight up in the saddle. I had to snicker at that. I knew Guchie could be a bit of a suck up, but really? Then again, being in the presence of someone actually in the military might do him some good. Louise turned to look at me.

"Are you alright?" she asked, clearly noticing my discomfort. This was the longest period of time I ever spent in a saddle and I certainly felt it. I just felt sore. Louise knew it, to. Considering she was the one to teach me about riding on horseback.

"I'm fine," I fibbed, resisting the urge to stretch. I wanted to stretch so bad! It would help loosen me up. I felt like a spring coil, ready to burst at the slightest touch.

"There is no need to act so formal, Guchie. I don't like to act like nobility," Wardes said as he removed some of the packs off his griffon, before entering the building.

"You know, I'll tell you this much," Louise said after he was gone. I nodded my head, to show I was listening, but continued getting everything off the horses.

"My parents decided on this betrothal thing," she went on, and I caught her shrugging out the corner of my eye. No real surprise from me there.

"He seems nice. Not like certain other nobles I've met," I said, thinking back to the viscount. I put my personal emotions aside for the time being. From what I had seen, he was quite caring and compassionate, and overall, just nice. I didn't have an reason to doubt that, either.

"I've always looked up to him, from when I was a child," Louise said, clearly thinking back. "He lost his parents early on, and went through many hardships, to become leader of the magic guard." That was interesting. An orphan, and it was pretty clear he got where he was based on skill, not family name.

"A good person and hard working. I do have to hand it to your parents. I may not like arranged marriages, but they clearly have better taste than most," I teased. Louise's face heated up, clearly at a loss for words, before storming off. Ok, that might have been a bit to much.

I plopped down with a sigh, soreness taking over. I was tired, hungry, and exhausted from the travel.

"I just want to sit back and think," I said to nobody in particular. I needed to rest.

"About?" Derf suddenly prompted, popping out of his sheath. Yeah, no, I wasn't going to spill my heart out to a sentient sword.

"Life. The universe. Everything," I shrugged.

"Oh, those things? That's pretty easy, actually," the blade responded.

"Is that so?" I raised my eyebrow.

"Yes, it is. The answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything is forty-two," the blade stated. I raised both my eyebrows. Did that really just happen?

"I'm just going to ignore that even happened," I sighed. Really? Forty-two? The worst part was, I actually understood the reference. My stomach let out a rumble, getting my attention. I guess I should get moving, anyway. The bagages weren't going to carry themselves.

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Dinner started fairly simply enough, with everyone being hungry from the day long journey. Though, it didn't take long for conversation to start back up.

"To summon a human familiar… Nothing less from you, Louise," Wardes started, looking down at the smaller child.

"Even you would say that, Lord Wardes," Louise said, looking up from her plate. I raised an eyebrow. Where exactly was this going? Louise always did have confidence issues, but Wardes didn't seem the type to prey on that.

"No, I'm not being sarcastic. This is an amazing thing, Louise," he said. I had to grin a little at that. I'm the only person thinking summoning a human was rare and special. He certainly had a more interesting outlook than most nobles I had meet. I looked up from my food, noticing that he was staring at me.

"I heard the two of you had a duel," the older nobleman said, shifting his gaze to Guchie, whose eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, as he pounded his chest to keep himself from choking. I had to grin at that. I was keeping that as one of the greatest mental pictures of all time.

"That was…" Guchie rasped, trying to get the words out correctly. I wasn't going to bother trying to correct him. This was just far too humorous.

"Is it true that the duel was the first time you wield that weapon, Isabella?" he asked, returning his attention to me. I nodded.

"And it's the only time I plan to, as well. Xal'alath is cursed," I stated. Hopefully, I would never need that thing again. I wanted nothing more to do with the thing. If it wasn't for instinct, it would have cost me an arm.

"So I've heard. Is it true that you used the Staff of Destruction to capture Fouquet the Sculptor as well?" Wardes asked. A brief look of surprise came to my face, my eyes flicking quickly to Louise. How did he know that? The only people that knew that was Tabitha, Kirchie, Louise, and I. As far as I knew, Tabitha and Kirchie never talked about it, and from Louise's face, she wasn't the source of this information. So how did he know that?

"Correct. You really are quite informed," I said, trying to make sense of this in my head. It just didn't fit together.

"Being where I am, I get all sorts of detailed information," he said with a grin. I wanted to frown. Not for something like this.

"Even about a familiar?" Louise questioned, eyes also closed. I see, shots fired for before. I guess what's fair is fair, and I did kind of deserve it.

"That's why I've developed an interest in you," Wardes said. I raised an eyebrow. Louise appeared somewhat alarmed.

"I had thought I would ask you of a practice match," he clarified, noticing Louise's expression. Which actually became more exaggerated. I had to grin at that. School children left a bit to be desered in the combat department. Going up against a highly skilled and trained opponent would definitely be better.

"The ship leaves tomorrow night," Wardes explained. "It's boring to just spend idle time, right?"

"You don't need to explain your reasoning," I grin. "You already had my attention at 'practice match'."

"Lord Wardes! Isabella!" Louise shouted. "This is not the time to be doing …" Wades didn't let her finish, interrupting her softly.

"It's okay, I'll go easy on her, of course," he said, trying to reassure the pinkette.

"You wound me, Wardes," I said, faking offense to his statement. In all seriousness, holding back wouldn't be that bad of an idea. Less collateral damage that way. He shot me a good natured smirk.

"Now, let's get to our rooms soon," Wardes stood up suddenly, taking Louise's hand. I frowned slightly. I knew they were engaged, but this place was similar to Medieval Europe.

"No, I can't. We're not married yet," Louise said, blushing slightly. There it was. Being from Earth, I wouldn't normally find this that big of a deal. Of course, I doubt that they were going to do that.

"It's all right. We're engaged," he tried to reassure Louise. I could tell she was going to protest more, but he whispered something in her ear. I couldn't make out the words, naturally, but she did leave without resistance.

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P.O.V. Louise

"Your magical powers were always compared with your older sisters, and you always pouted in that small boat," my fiancee said, taking a sip of wine. I blushed in embarrassment, thinking back to then. Eleonore and Cattleya both were far more successful with magic than I had ever been.

"But," he went on, "I have always felt an aura from you unlike any other, even back then." I looked at him, confused. It wasn't helping that some alcohol was in my system.

"An aura unlike any other?" I questioned, tilting my head to the side. I didn't understand what he was getting at.

"There is a special power that only you have," Lord Wardes said vaguely.

"That's not true," I looked down, before pausing. No, that statement itself wasn't true. I had some success in magic. With, my familiars … help. Did that even count?

"Let's get married when this mission is over, Louise," he said suddenly I felt heat rising in my face, and the fact it came out of nowhere left me shocked. He didn't seem to be content to stop there.

"I don't intent to end as just the leader of the Magic Guard!" he declared, rising out of his seat. "Someday, I would like to rule a country. No, I want to be a noble that moves the entire world of Halkegina!"

"But, such a sudden marriage," I whispered, still in shock. It was so sudden. Why now? What was so important about right now?

"I need you, Louise," he said, looking down at me.

"But it's so sudden," I responded. This was just too much. Marriage? Now?

"Louise," he whispered, cupping my face and leaning in close. I closed my eyes. "I'll protect you." Something inside me clicked. Didn't Isabella say the exact same thing to me, just the other night? The whisper was faint, but it was heard, and Wardes pulled back. His gaze told the story well enough.

"It's not that," I stammered, trying to recover. "Isabella came here from another world, not knowing anything, and I was the one that summoned her. I'm responsible …" I didn't get to finish as he cut me off.

"It looks like someone is starting to live inside your heart," Wardes said, strangely calm.

"It's not like that," I responded in panic, getting more and more embarrassed. It couldn't be. She's my friend. She has been my familiar for only a short time, but she has been there

"It's all right. I won't ask you to give me an answer right now," Wardes voice turned serious. I would have started protesting, if it wasn't for what he said at the door.

"By the end of this journey, your heart shall be completely mine," he said as he left the room, leaving me even more confused than before. What did he mean by that?

"Isabell," I faintly whisper, "What do you mean to me?"

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P.O.V. Isabella

"By the end of this journey, your heart shall be completely mine." My eyes narrowed. I took the room next to Louise's and Wardes own, in my normal, protective fashion. I had grown suspicious when I could actually hearing things through the wall. Nothing that I could decipher, but I had approached the door to see what exactly was going on. I saw Wardes as he was leaving, and heard his statement.

Something was up. The statement ran completely conflicting to everything I'd seen about Wardes thus far. I frowned. What exactly was going on? I was clearly missing pieces of the puzzle. What, exactly, was his plan? With a statement like that, it was impossible to not be suspicious. I needed more information. I needed more time to get that information. You know what? It's time to go to bed, and stop thinking about this. After all, I had a sparing match in the morning.

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After a quick breakfast I made my way to the courtyard. It wasn't that large. Not a whole lot of maneuvering room. This could work against me. We both took our places, despite Louise's protests.

"Then shall we began, Isabella?" Wardes asked, directly across from me, sword already out. It was an interesting one to say the least. Could it be used for casting? That would be problematic, if true.

"I'm ready when you are," I drew Derf, taking a loss fighting stance, placing both my hands on the hilt. I felt the runes glow underneath my gloves. I grinned, rushing forward, attacking with powerful and fast overhand swings. Wardes dodged each one, carefully and with great calculation, each blow missing by only a few inches.

I paused my attacks. Offense wasn't working. No point in keeping it up if it wasn't going to be effective. Wardes pressed his new advantage, attacking with multiple jabs and thrusts. I shifted Derf side to side, pushing each blow aside, waiting for an opening. On the fifth blow, I put force behind my deflection, letting go of the hilt, only to grab it in a reverse grip, closing the distance and slashing downward. The blow missed as Wardes jumped backwards, away from the blow. I flipped Derf up into his original position.

"Agile. As I expected," Wardes said calmly, "And you are clearly not a novice, either." I snorted. Now was not the time for talking. Doing so now either meant he was confident, or he was trying to get a rise out of me. I darted forward, trusting Derf forward, only for him to dodge of the way.

"But you still have many," he didn't get further, being cut off by a knife hitting his blade. A distraction from my real strike, a knee right above the kidney. No real lasting damage, but it's painful, if nothing else. I pressed the advantage while I still had it, trying to overpower my way through his guard. Even with the wound, Wardes defense was impeccable. Each second that passed was another second of recovery for him, and his defenses already started to pick back up. It didn't take long for me to end up on the defensive again.

" **Del Wil Sol La Winde,** " Wardes started to chant. So the sword did double as a wand! I had to get out of the way! I ducked at the last second, avoiding the worst of the powerful sphere of raging wind. The gusts still knocked me off my feet, causing me to roll back before springing forward to attack.

When with him using his surprise ace, the fight was still in his favor. He was clearly the better swordsman. But I wasn't just swords. Even without my artifacts, I still had plenty of tricks. Currently we were deadlocked, my strength against his. I grit my teeth, before landing a push kick, breaking us apart. Wardes was definitely going to be feeling this for the next couple of days. I had landed more than a few blows with my feet and knees, each one likely to leave a bruise behind. I wasn't much better off. More than once, his blunt sword had managed to bypass my defenses, which hurt, a lot.

" **Del Wil Sol La Winde,** " Wardes began chanting again. Damnit! I had just given him the distance to fire off his spells! I darted forward, making an attempt to deflect the attack away from me. Ducking worked once, but it wasn't going to work again. I parried the swordwand, but not fast enough. I diverted the worst of blast but my right shoulder was hit hard. I let out a hiss in pain as blades of wind cut into my shoulder, knocking me airborne. Gravity promptly took over, causing me to land on the ground with a loud crash. I groan, slowly pulling myself back up.

The fight was over however. I had lost. You can't win every fight, I suppose. After all, Wardes was the leader of the Magic Guard, making him one of the best that Tristain had to offer, so I wasn't really disappointed in my lose.

"Are you all right, Isabella?" Louise came rushing over to my side, placing her hand on my right shoulder, before flinching back as I winced. My shoulder felt warm. Why did it feel warm? I looked down at it. Well, that might be an issue. The final blow had resulted two gasps on my shoulder. They didn't look that bad, but I was going to have to deal with it soon.

"You're good, but right now, you can't win against a real mage," Wardes voice was cold. "In other words, you can't protect Louise." Really. Really. So that was his plan? Try and discourage me? Bring me down? Make me mad? I let out a chuckle, before pulling myself to my feet.

"That was quite the spar," I grinned, clutching my shoulder to keep me from bleeding everywhere. "Maybe after this mission is finished, we should have another. Sparring school children isn't that effective after all. Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to deal with this before I have to be scrubbing blood off of stone." I left, but not before sheathing Derf

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P.O.V. Third Person

Wardes grimaced. After the match, he had returned to his quarters. The match had gone exactly like he had wanted. Yes, Louise's familiar lasted a little bit longer than he had expected, thanks to her tricks and cheap hits, but the outcome was a forgone conclusion. She didn't even use what he had been worried the most about.

It was what happened after the fight the left anything to be desired. Wardes need them to fall apart. To draw Gandalfr away with her emotions. Make her lose, then take it out on her master. From what he had heard, getting her anger would be easy. She was headstrong, temperamental, and sometimes outright aggressive.

That wasn't even close to what happened. She acted perfectly calm. Like this was nothing of importance. Did she throw the fight? Was she really that suspicious of him? He hadn't given her a reason to. Yes, he had tried to slowly aggravate Isabella by being constantly close to Louise. To do things that she could not. It seemed to have worked, at least for a time. Now, it didn't seem to work. Isabella's presence was the only thing keeping him from going through with his plans. Guchie was nothing more than an inconvenience that could be easily dealt with at any time. Fouquet had lost to her only due to Gandalfr's position of the Staff of Destruction. If he couldn't lie and break them apart, at the least he could distract Gandalf until his plans were complete. It was time to use her for the reason he let her out of prison for.

To kill two birds, with a single stone.

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P.O.V. Louise

I paused outside of the room Isabell had been staying in. Should I really go in? I wanted to try to talk to her, but seeing that she was hurt, I didn't want to disturb her. I lightly tapped on the door.

"Who is it?" a muffled voice asked from the room. Even through the door, I could hear the pain. It was likely worse than I thought. Why did Wardes use such a damaging spell? He might have done more than a few deep cuts.

"It's Louise," I said, finally committing.

"Come in, then. Just, mind the blood," I heard. Was it really that bad? I slipped into the room quickly. Isabella had pretty taken her shirt off to better try and deal with the wound. Her back was to me, but I could she her body twitch in pain. What was she doing? I took a step closer, squinting. She had a needle and thread. And she was inserting it into her skin! What was she doing? Using the needle and the thread to close the cuts?

"Can you hold on to this for a second?" she asked, holding out the crimson painted needle. I took it reluctantly, and held it gently. My familiar had just been poking this through her flesh. I watched her reach over to Derf. In a flash, the blade became a giant golden hammer. It head of the hammer seemed to have the appearance of two clenched fists. My familiar whispered a brief word, resulting in a bright flash. Once I could see again, the gash had already vanished from her shoulder, leaving only a faint scar in it's place.

"Thank you," Isabell smiled at me, taking the needle back, before yanking harshly, pulling the thread out of her body. She slowly began to apply a large bandage to the wound.

"Are you ok?" I asked as she was finishing. It was a bit of a stupid question.

"I will be," my familiar said, rubbing her shoulder. "I'm just going to be sore for a while, that's all. Though I am grateful for your concern." I felt my face get flushed.

"All I need is some bed rest for the time," I saw her smile, trying to reassure me. I frowned, still concerned.

"Are sure. If you can't stay, I won't hold it against you," I said. She already got herself hurt. I didn't want her to get hurt again. Isabell just smiled, patting my head.

"The only way I'm leaving is against my will," she said bluntly. I looked at her, confused.

"What do you mean?" I asked. What was she talking about? Was she worried something bad was about to happen?

"I'm just surprised that this revolution hasn't done anything to try and stop us yet," Isabell sighed, flopping into her bed.

"You really think they would do that?" I asked. To strike at us here would mean war!

"War's are rarely won honorably, Louise," she pushed herself back up. "I wouldn't be surprised if they tried sabotage, if not an outright attack before the day is up. If we can't get to Albion, we can't complete our mission." I nodded. That did make sense.

"And if they do try to attack," my familiar grinned wildly, "look for emerald fire. That will be your sign to get to Albion. I'll catch up when I can."

"Are you sure?" I questioned, looking at her. Isabell's grin was still in place.

"More than anything," she reassured.

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P.O.V. Isabella

"Stop lagging behind! We are going to be late!" Guchie shouted downwards at me.

"Bite me!" I shouted back, "I don't see you carrying anything, and I'm the one with the wounded shoulder!" Little brat. Would it kill him to carry his own weight? At least nothing had happened. For once, I was quite happy to be wrong.

Boom! The massive explosion shook the area. I stumbled, thrown off balance by the shock waves. I waved my hand to clear the dust and debris from my vision.

"What the?" I snarled. That thought wasn't an invitation, damnit! I looked up as the dust settled. Oh come on!

"Fouquet," I spat, before turning around, "Guchie, stay behind me. That's an order!" I was beyond pissed off at this point. Fouquet wasn't just a thief, but she was working for these rebels! How did she get out of prison! I dropped the gear on the ground, drawing Derf.

"You're doing this 'green fire', partner?" the blade asked. I nodded simply. My anger ignited, creating a twisting of emerald fire around me. Derf split in two, taking the shape of two massive war glaives. Suddenly, the pillar of flame surged into my body. I felt the flames grow within me to a fever pitch, forming glowing tattoo's. Horn's grew from my head, and wings of pure shadow took form on my back. My sight went dark, before igniting in an array of colors. My clothing became replaced by leather armor that showed off my markings.

The twister of emerald flame stopped spinning, opening around me. My anger was magnified. My rage, fuel for my strength. And there was only one thing to say.

"You are not prepared!" I bellowed, as my wings pushed me into the air.

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Sorry about how late this was. The pre-patch has been keeping me busy. Not only that College is starting up next week. And I'm going back to work. And Legion comes out in two weeks. /Sigh. Hopefully, I have the first season done by end of the year. And yes, we are getting so close to the end of season one! And I finally broke the curse of the fourteenth chapter!

And this is the longest chapter I've ever made! It just kept writing itself. I hope you all enjoyed, and I hope to see you next time, for on August 30th, Kingdoms will burn (I'm talking about in WoW).


	16. Fel Fury

It's review response time!

Guest: Fouquet is not prepared!

Blackholelord: Thank you. Everyone's support means a lot.

Now on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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I snarled as the massive golem tried to knock me out of the air. The only thing preventing its success was a pair of black leathery wings. No, not just wings. My wings. My heart felt like it was pumping fire throughout my body. I cut off my flight, failing towards the golem's arm, using my momentum to spin. I brought the blades down at once, using each glaives blade to push myself into the next strike.

I landed on the ground lightly as the golem stumbled backwards from the onslaught. The golem's right arm was covered in massive gashes, each cut a testament to my strength. Fire rolled over the limb, sinking into the damaged portions. Not just normal fire. Fel fire. Already, the blaze was doing it's work, greatly slowing down the golem's ability to recover.

"Fouquet," I hissed, my wings reforming out of shadow. "What are you doing here?" The venom in my voice was clear. Why was she here? Last I heard, she was in a prison cell. This didn't make any sense. Unless somebody let her out, or broke her out. But who would do that? Why would the rebel's rely on an already defeated arch-thief? No matter. I was going to bring her down this time.

The Greenette was clearly panicked, as the attempts to repair her golem continued to fail. I didn't even bother to turn around. I could see everything! I could see the golem, despite it being right behind me. I could feel the magic holding it together. I could see her own magic. Guchie's as well. Fouquet had her golem launch another attack, this time with it's left hand. I simply sidestepped the clumsy attack, before retaliating, tearing open its wrist with my warglaives. I forced green fire into the opening, before darting forward.

My blades bite into the stone leg's of the golem with ease, each slash and cut bringing with it a burst of fel fire, slowly crippling the already slow and clumsy golem's movement. The flames had gone beyond being an annoyance, and had begun consuming the magic holding the golem together. It was slow, but my new eyes could see it. Meanwhile, Fouquet was clearly panicked, her perch on her golems shoulder allowing her to see exactly what was happening to the golem.

I had to grin. This was easy. If I had known the Twinblades of the Deceiver were this powerful, I would have used it before now! Wardes would have never stood a chance! I began laughing. I would bring this down now! I lined the up the staggering golem's legs. I felt my eye sockets burn, signaling the chaotic beam of fel energy. The result was staggering. The golem's right leg had been cut off, leaving only a partial limb, covered in corrupted molten rocked. The rocky creature staggered backwards, beginning to fall. I grinned wildly. Might as well help it fall.

I felt my body heat up, fel flames flickering around my body. The demonic essence flowed through my body, surging and raging beneath my skin. The shadowy energy leaked from my body, before fusing with the fel fire that surrounded it. The combination of the two energies surged inward, clinging to my skin like a bandage. For a few seconds, I felt the second skin working on my body, adding to it. I lept forward, crashing into the golem's chest, letting out an earth shaking roar as my demon infused body forced my opponent to the ground.

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P.O.V. Louise

I had been waiting by the docks for more than a few minutes. Where was everyone? I jumped as a loud explosion echoed through the area. I lowered my hand to where I kept my wand. What was happening? Had we really been discovered?

"We need to leave, now!" Wardes shouted, slightly panicked. Something was wrong. He had gone back to check on Isabell and Guchie, but he wasn't here with them.

"What has happened?" I asked, concerned. The fact that he had come this way, after such an explosion, meant that something had gone wrong.

"The rebel's know. They sent a group to stop us. Isabell said she would hold them off and rejoin us when she is able," Wardes said as he got on the ship. I paused. Was Isabell really under attack? Didn't she say something about emerald fire being the?

I didn't get to finish my thought as the temperature increased. I heard several gasps, with people around me pointing at the sky. I looked up, and felt my eyes widen in shock. Over the rocky cliff face, a massive, spinning twisting of light green flame could be seen. That was Isabell? That couldn't be. The blaze died down quickly, but many were still in shock.

"I think we need leave," I said faintly. Wardes could only nod in agreement.

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The situation in Albion was far worse than I ever imagined. No wonder the Princess wanted that letter back as soon as possible. If the forces of the royal family had been pushed this far. This was a real disaster. For the prince to be the last and only hope they had left. I just hope that Isabell isn't having too much trouble.

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P.O.V. Isabella

I grinned wildly, have Fouquet pinned against the wall by my warglaives. This was kind of sad. I had expected at least a little bit more entertainment out of her. No matter. It's time to figure out what's really going on here.

"So, Fouquet," my voice was harsh and laced with venom, "What exactly are you doing here?"

"I thought I would visit the person who sent me to prison in the first place," she responded, trying and failing to hide her fear. A possible answer, and a passable one at that. It was still a lie, though.

"Strike one," I felt my eye sockets narrow. "Who got you out of prison?"

"I got myself out," she said. I frowned. That was extremely unlikely, at best. I guess some more advanced techniques to get her to start telling me the truth. I snapped my fingers, creating a small orb of green flame in my hand.

"I'm sure you noticed this during our little spat, Fouquet. This isn't normal fire," I grinned madly, flashing my full set of teeth.

"This is Fel fire. You may not have noticed it, but can use magic as a fuel source. I've always wanted to know exactly what happens when one puts this type of magic into a mage," I threatened, tone low. "You have one last chance to answer honestly, before I start indulging that curiosity."

The greenette was now quaking in fear. "I don't know, honest!" she shrieked in panic. I frowned. She was telling the truth know.

"Ok then. What are you doing here?" I repeated my early question, still glaring down at the arch-thief that was now quivering like a child.

"In exchange for my freedom, they wanted me to stall you," the greenette said. I paused. They? The rebels?

"Who is they?" I questioned. I needed as much information as possible.

"Reconquista," she said simply. Reconquista? That would likely be the name of the rebel force. Oh well, not matter. I couldn't have her running back and reporting this. I reached to the twin blades.

"Are you going to kill me?" Fouquet's voice was faint, like that of a child's. I felt my body twitch. What was I doing? I didn't need to kill her, right?

"If you do, please visit a small orphanage near Westwood village," she continued on, and my body froze up completely. What was I doing? I had to remain in control. Now!

"Who are you more scared of? Me, or them," my voice was low, trying to hide the borderline panic I felt in my chest.

"You," Fouquet's whisper was faint, and it was enough. I removed the twin warglaives from the stone. Her eyes opened, widening in shock.

"Go, before I change my mind," I snarled before she could protest. Fouquet merely jumped away, as I resumed my human form. I placed Derf back in his sheath. Even after leaving my empowered state, my body still felt like it was on fire. Using that weapon may have been a bad idea. And what was happening back there? I nearly killed Fouquet in cold blood!

The winds suddenly shifted behind me. You have got to me kidding me! If this ended up being another attack, I was going to have a fit! Thankfully, it wasn't so, as an all too familiar blue dragon landed near the cliff face. Including two familiar faces. One welcome, and the other, not so much.

Of course, my eyes had already revealed that the ship Louise and Wardes were on had already left. So Fouquet was successful in that regard. But hopefully, we could catch another … A loud dinging noise suddenly reached my ears, as one of the flying boats flew overhead. This has not been my week. Not in the slightest.

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"They said the rest of their companions were going back to school," The man behind the counter told me. I let out a frustrated sigh, doing my best to stop myself from developing an eye twitch. I still seemed to have some leftover fel energy, if my temper was anything to go by.

"Thank you," I said, doing my best to keep my anger out of my voice. It wasn't the innkeeper's fault. But why would Wardes lie about that? Something was up. First, Fouquet shows up as a distraction. Now this. Nothing felt right.

"Well, it's official, Wardes abandoned us here," I sighed. This was great. Something was up, and Louise was with a person that I clearly couldn't trust as much as I had. Guchie looked alarmed.

"Why did Viscount Wardes leave us behind?" He asked. I frowned, before heading to the docks.

"I don't know, and to be honest, I don't like it," I snapped. He lied about our departure, and if he lied about that, what else could have have? Then, of course, there was Fouquet, whose job was to stall. Was it possible for Wardes and Fouquet to be working together? Or was this all my imagination.

We finally stopped at the pier. Kirchie volunteered herself to find out when the next boat came in. I needed a plan. Was Sylphid an option? How many people could the blue dragon carry? More importantly, did she have the strength for such a trip? And even if we did get to Albion, how exactly could I track Louise? I wished I thought of this ahead of time!

"The next ship doesn't depart until tomorrow morning," Kirchie said as she ran over. "We have no choice but to wait." I was about to sigh, until I noticed something. Was Guchie getting taller? I took a step back, surprised. No, that wasn't it. The ground seemed to be surging up beneath his feet. Guchie was about to speak, but was knocked over by a blast of rock. Ok, what was going on? I looked down at the hole made in the ground. This was, interesting. Not to mention a blessing. This mole came all the way chasing after either Guchie, or that ring it had attacked Louise over. It looks like I found my tracking device.

"Tabithia, how many people can Sylphid carry?" I whipped around.

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P.O.V. Louise

I let out a low sigh from my room. I was concerned about Isabell. Or more importantly, how exactly we were going to regroup. I never told her were Prince Wales was. In fact, I hadn't told anyone, at the Princess's request. Not until we arrived at Albion, at least. This wouldn't be an issue if we were still together as a group. But, now that we were split up, Isabell wouldn't know. I just hoped that everything would be just fine.

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P.O.V. Third Person

Wardes grit his teeth in annoyance. At first, he had no doubt that Fouquet would be able to crush the two like a bug. Now, after that display, of, well, whatever that was, he doubted that Fouquet could have made it out alive. That was of no consequence. She had served her purpose well enough as a distraction. That meant, however, that Louise's familiar knew, or at the least, suspected something might be wrong.

And that was the last thing the man needed. Especially after that display. He had seen the fight for only a few seconds, but it was more than enough. Gandalfr's weapon's tore the golem to pieces.

All he could to do was make sure Louise could keep her familiar under control when she saw things his way.

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P.O.V. Louise

A small, abandoned chapel. It would be the last place that anyone would look for a royal prince. Which, made it the perfect hiding place for Prince Wales and his forces. Lord Wardes had opened the door for me as we stepped inside.

Something about the place was off. I couldn't see anyone, but I felt like someone, no, a lot of someone's, were watching from the shadows. I let out a slight gasp, finally noticing the heavily armored soldiers in the shadow, each one armed with a sword wand.

"She is the diplomatic ambassador from Tristan, Lady La Valliere," Lord Wardes said before I could speak, shielding me with his body. "We wish to meet with Prince Wales."

"Ambassador from Tristan?" the lead soldier mocked, brandishing his blade. I almost took a step back. This wasn't looking good. "You should have come up with a better lie. There isn't anyone in that country that would know about this place."

"I was told by Princess Henrietta!" I said, stepping forward. The armored figure paused.

"Henrietta?" was the faint whisper I heard.

"I don't have any business with you guys!" I went on, not caring about the sword wand pointed at my face "Where is Prince Wales?" I move my hand, revealing the ring on it. The soldier gasped, sheathing his blade, before pulling off his glove. It was my turn to gasp. The ring was nearly identical!

"Bring your hand out, now," the knight suddenly ordered. I paused. Was this really a good idea? Well, it's not like I had any other option at this point. I held out my hand with the ring on it. As soon as the two came close, the rings began to glow, creating a shimmering light between them.

"This ring, the Ruby of Wind, has been passed down for generations in Albion's royal family," the knight said. If that was true, how did he… Oh. "And you have the Ruby of Water. Water and wind create a rainbow." The knight removed his helmet. No way.

"You're," I say simply, failing to get the words out.

"My apologies, Ambassador. I am the Prince of Albion, Wales Tubor."

It didn't take long for us to get on to business. After finally arriving in his quarters, I handed him the letter from the Princess. I watched as he read it. He seemed unhappy.

"I see," he suddenly sighed, walking over to his desk, grabbing a letter with great reluctance. "Take this," the prince said, handing me a small envelope. I truly did want to know what was the contents of that letter. It was not my place to ask such, however. I began to move to the door, but the Prince stopped.

"Ambassador, I would like you to pass something onto Princess Hentria. Something that is too sensitive to put into writing," Prince Wales said. Something too sensitive for writing?

"I will," I said simply. If was truly this important, I needed to know.

"This uprising is more than just a civil war between the royalty and nobility. There is an organization behind this civil war. And when this fight is finished, they will move on to other countries," the prince said. An organization was behind this? What type of organization would want this?! And if this was just their first conquest, what was next?!

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"So that's the letter?" Wardes suddenly asked, almost like he had been waiting out of sight for my return. I had personally been debating what to do with the letter. Princess Henrietta wanted it back, but part of me knew Isabell would say destroy it before it could cause any more trouble. I suddenly whipped around to Wardes location.

"With this, our mission is complete," he said, walking over to me. Indeed it was. "I want to ask Prince Wales to witness us in joining in holy matrimony." Wait, what? Didn't I already tell him I wasn't ready yet! He suddenly grabbed me, covering my body with his arms. I started to struggle against his grip.

"I need you. Or rather, Reconquista needs you," he whispered into my ear. Reconquista? That was the organization behind the civil war! He was in league with them this whole time! I struggled even more. Isabell! Where are you! This wasn't working! What did Isabell say about guys again? Something about them having one uniform weak spot? I kicked upwards with my leg with as much force as I had. Wardes grip loosened as he let out a groan of pain, allowing me to break free from his grasp. I ran in a panic, only to bump into a strange man only a few feet away.

"You will not get away, descendant of the void," he said, raising his hand. The ring on his finger flashed purple. I felt my body go slack as I faded into the darkness.

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I couldn't feel anything. I couldn't see anything. What was happening? I could faintly hear whispers. A wedding? I hadn't agreed to a wedding. I couldn't control my own body!

"Bride, third born daughter of La Valliere, Louise Francoise Le Blanc De La Valliere. Do you swear to respect, love, and to have him as your lawfully wedded husband," the whisper was familiar. Prince Wales? Why couldn't he see something was wrong?

"I do," my body says against my command. Against my will. What is happening! Someone, anyone, save me!

"If anyone can show just cause why this couple cannot lawfully be joined together in matrimony, let them speak now or forever hold their peace," Wales finished the wedding vows. Of course no one could object. I would, but was physically unable to. Even in my state, I suddenly felt the room heat up. Suddenly the door was ripped open. No, more accurately, it was completely turned into a cloud dust and splinters.

"If you think that was me holding my peace, Wardes, then you are in for a bad time."

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I've been waiting to drop that line for months! Sorry about the short chapter. Legion is coming out tommorow, and I wanted to get this out before I get sucked in. Plus, this was meant to be a short chapter, just setting up the showdown between Isabella and Wardes, round two.

I can't honestly say when the next chapter is coming out. Between Legion, College, and my job, I'm going to be busy. I'll do my best to log in some writing between classes. But school and work come first.

I hope I see you next time, and hopefully, see you taking the fight to the Burning Legion!


	17. Inferno of Rage

It's review response time!

Boyzilla: Indeed. Legion has more content than WoD straight out of the gate, and with the 7.1 containing a new mythic and a new three boss raid, Legion has me extremely excited and ready for raiding.

Now on with the show!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Isabella

I was enraged by the sight before me. No beyond enraged. My anger nearly caused the air around me to ignite. He dared use magic to force someone into marriage! He dare use magic to force Louise into marriage! Before Derf could even give a hint of protest, I drew the blade, feeling the weapon change shape in my hands, splitting into two massive gauntlets. The Aldachi Warglaives. The massive blades took a different appearance, however, encasing my arm up to my elbow. I felt the fel energy from before come back with a vengeance, searing my skin and boiling my blood. I brought my fist back, sending it into the door.

The door was destroyed in an instant. Destroyed didn't do what happened any justice. The door simply disintegrated from the force, combined with the raging circle of fel fire raging around me. I forced the flames back into my body as I entered the church, my sightless eyes scanning the area. My eyes, my burned out eyes, picked up a strong magical aura to the right. An aura that seemed to be blanketing Louise's own. I guess I had my first target. I sent the warglaive flying toward the target, missing only by a few inches, the spinning gauntlet punching a hole in the wall, before coming back, creating another large gap in the structure's wall.

Well, if my initial action didn't have everyone's attention, I certainly had them now.

"If you think that was me holding my peace, Wardes, then you are in for a bad time," I snarled, flames flickering out of my back. Wardes himself looked either really angry, or really panicked. Louise was still trying to break out of the spell, but it's effects seemed to be fading. Wardes slowly went for his blade. I could sense his unease.

"Knight's! Arrest her!" the blonde from the back suddenly ordered, thought I could tell there was some confusion, realizing the wedding crasher was a her.

"No, Prince!" Louise started to protest as Wardes started to shift his weight.

"Louise, move now!" I ordered, leaping forward. Louise, bless her, understood, grabbing the Prince and somehow managed to get him out of the way as I came crashing down, using myself as a living shield as Wardes's blade bit into my back. I let out a growl in pain as the blade punctured my skin. I whipped around on instinct, my arm catching Wardes off guard, the blow crashing into his right side, knocking him back, but also making his blade to cut across my back, causing me to stagger. Blood had already begun to flow freely from the gash.

Then, the wound closed, dark energy bringing the blood back into my body, and closing the gaping wound rapidly. I let out a sigh of satisfaction. Weirdly enough, that felt strangely good.

"Stay behind me," I ordered, raising my arms in a loss defensive stance. Wardes had already returned to his feet, beginning to chant, releasing a powerful wind spell. I responded, fel flame building up within my burned out eye sockets, unleashing a beam of fel fire. The two collided, before exploding with fiery force, throwing up a wall of smoke and ash. I could see him. Wardes, on the other hand, couldn't see me. Though, it wasn't going to last long. I threw my warglaive in an arc, nearly connecting with his skull. The smoke began to rapidly shift. A wind spell! Of course! My attack revealed my location! My skin hardened instantly, as a blast of cutting air slammed into my chest. It actually didn't hurt. Much.

I lept forward, pressing my attack, forcing Wardes to defend against two weapons at once. I wasn't going to let him get off any more spells! He was putting up a better fight than Fouquet, at least. He leapt back as I attempted to crush his guard, sending stone and rock into the air. I threw a punch at his head, only to hit one of the pillars, embedding my weapon into the stone. Wardes smirked, before responding with three slashes, leaving bleeding gashes along my torso. Once again, after each blow struck, it began to close.

I growled, rearing back, the warglaive coming free, shattering the stone with ease. I swung my arm in an arc, this time catching him in the chest, sending him flying across the room. His blade blocked most of the attack though, but it was very clear that he felt the hit. I pressed the attack, leaping into the air, nearly crashing down on top of him. He rolled out of the way, beginning to cast another spell. Wait, where was he aiming? No. He wouldn't dare.

"Louise move!" I shouted as the spell launched. I turned around to intercept it, which proved to be a massive mistake, as Warde's blade bit into my ankle, hobbling me. Everything seemed to slow. Louise turning around, only to notice the spell fly right at her. I watched her flinch. No. This wasn't happening! This couldn't be happening! I needed to save her!

As it turns out, she didn't need me to save here. Prince Wales did, pushing her out of the spell's path. And taking the hit himself. I grit my teeth, my anger flowing through me like a raging wave. I swung my fist around, this time solidly catching him in the chest, Wardes ribs making a satisfying crunch. Demon fire coursed around me as I stood up to face him.

"You son of a," was as far as I got as I lost myself to my rage.

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"Isabell, we need to go," Louise's voice is what snapped me out of my rage. I looked around. The place was burning, green fire taking hold throughout the structure.

"Is he?" I didn't want to finish the sentence. I couldn't. He. He did what I couldn't. It wasn't right. It was never right. Why couldn't I have saved him? Why, with all this power, could I not save someone? Why could I only avenge them?

Louise's head feel in sadness, in her hand a ring exactly like the princess gave her. I held her close. I was so close to losing her. Never again. Never! Again!

Black, leathery wings grew from my back, as I clutched Louise against my chest, and I flew into the air, leaving only the dead and the dying behind.

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So sorry for the extremely short chapter, and ever more so for such a short chapter to take so long to come out. I've been busy with school, work, and of course, Legion. The reason this even got out was because of its shortness. I just wanted this to be the round two, and that was about it. I really need to work on my spacing. The next chapter will be much longer, that I can promise.

I hope to see you next time, and sorry again for such a short chapter.


	18. Aftermath

Let us begin!

' _Italics'_ are thoughts.

 **Bold** is for spells.

*around a word* means a scene change to that location.

"x-x-x-x" is P.O.V. change

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P.O.V. Louise

The trip back was easy, but very stressful. What was I going to say? What was I going to do? Prince Wales was dead, and Reconquista had the letter. This was bad. Not only that, Isabell seemed, well, almost like a rock. She did nothing but hold me against her. At points, I think I could hear her crying. At the least, she was trying to choke down sobs.

After what she did, I'm not sure I blamed her. Wardes (the filth), was a traitor, and deserved what he got. But breaking all of someone's bones and leaving them to burn alive was certainly cruel. And something that Isabell would normally not do. Given what he did, though, I doubt the Princess would give him any type of mercy. In fact, it might have been less painful, going that way. Treason and regicide? The minimum for treason alone was death. This? The punishment would have been far worse.

But how was I going to break this to the princess? Prince Wales was dead, and the letter captured. We had failed our mission. Even though we had been betrayed from within, we still failed.

And that was what was bothering me. We failed. We failed our oath, my country, and the faith the princess had been put in us. I palmed the ring in my hand. This is all that was left of Prince Wales. The Wind Ruby. The simple ring was all that we had left. It's all she had left.

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"This is all that remains of Prince Wales?" Henrietta looked down at the ring I had given her. I kept my head low.

"The prince was assassinated in front of me, and the letter was stolen as well," I said, "I'm responsible for all of this. Because I couldn't see through Wardes." I stopped, as the Princess placed her hand on my shoulder.

"Please, lift your head up, Louise Francoise," the princess knelled down, bringing herself to my face level. I rose my head, looking into the princess's teary eyes.

"Thank you for bringing me this memento, as well as his last words," she said, before pulling me into a hug. In her arms, I finally felt myself cry.

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P.O.V. Third Person

Leo had to grin. Of course, at the moment he was stranded in a world mostly unknown to him, but at least he was about to help uncover one of the many great mysteries of this place. How exactly did Earth techology find itself here? Hopefully, he would be part of finding the answer. As soon as Colbert finished getting the paperwork in order. He wanted to go find that 'dragon', ever since he and Isabella had brought it up.

Apparently, he had a lead on it as well. Something about a small town known as Talb. Normally, he would doubt that the plane would be intact after so long, but this was a world of magic, so there was some hope that the plane was, at the least, somewhat intact. Movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. A streak of pink hair. Was that Louise? If so, where was Isabella? Normally, the two weren't that far apart.

"Louise, where is Isabella?" Leo asked as Louise reached the top of the stairs. Louise looked startled, clearly not expecting her familiars friend to be present.

"In our room," Louise said simply. Leo frowned. Something wasn't right. He understood that the two had gone on some type of important mission. That meant Louise had to be reporting to the headmaster about something. If that was the case, where was Isabella? Had something happened? If so, and Isabella's parents found out, they were all likely dead.

"Is everything ok?" Leo asked again, looking down at Louise. Her face shift, caught in between wanting to lie, or simply tell the truth.

"I don't know," Louise finally sighed. Leo's frown grew bigger. For Louise to admit not knowing, meant things weren't exactly good. And for her not to actually know, meant that Isabella wasn't telling her, either. Isabella being somewhat reserved wasn't exactly new. She could be loud and boisterous at times, but she was socially more reserved than not.

"I'll go talk with her."

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P.O.V. Isabella

"Isabella? Isabella, open up," a voice said, knocking loudly on the door.

"Go away, Leo," I hissed, curling up in a ball. I felt sick. So, so sick. The fel venom coursed through my veins like liquid fire. Why did I have to use those weapons? Why? WHY! I killed a person! I didn't want to kill somebody! But I did. Some part of me wanted to, or I wouldn't have. The fel just made it easier.

I heard a shuffling at the door. Had he finally got the picture and left? I just wanted to be left alone. I needed to be left alone. I just wanted this poison out of my body! I didn't want to be sick anymore!

Suddenly the door came crashing down from a swift kick, the noise causing me to wince. I shoot an ugly glare at Leo, who, strangely, didn't seem phased.

"Isabella, I just want to talk," Leo said, face softening.

"And I don't want to," I snarl back, glaring at him angrily. I just wanted to be left alone! Leo suddenly balked, stepping back suddenly, before glaring back.

"Isabella. What weapons did you use on that mission?" Leo's voice was full of concern. I simply glared at him.

"Isabella. What? Weapons?" Leo's voice became harsh with worry.

"The warglaives," I said, looking down at the floor, not able to look him in the eye. He suddenly rushed over to me.

"Which one?" his voice was panicked now, having to restrain himself from shaking me to death.

"Both of them," I continued to look down. Leo swore under his breath.

"You know exactly what the Illidari do to themselves. What possessed you into thinking using both those weapons was a good idea?" Leo's eyes burned into my skull.

"I was mad. Really mad," I said, looking down. Hardly a good reason. It wasn't even a reason at all. Just an excuse.

"At least nothing bad happened," Leo finally sighed. How little did he know.

"I killed somebody," I said. I couldn't help it. It just slipped out on it's own. Leo paused.

"I think we are going to need to talk about this."

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And so I talked. Part of me felt better to have my thoughts off my chest. Things I couldn't share with Louise. Things I couldn't bring myself to accept. Leo was a great listener, taking in the information while waiting his turn. I stopped after I reached the point of Wardes demise, my body shaking in both rage and shame. Leo just simply sighed.

"You are just as aware of what the penalty for treason is in medieval Europe was as I am. He was dead the moment he started working for this Reconquista group," Loe said.

"But," I tried to interrupt, but he wouldn't let me.

"What you did was a mercy, compared to what would happen normally. Medieval torture techniques were beyond brutal. What you did wasn't exactly nice, but compared to what a torture squad would do to him, I would take the way Wardes went any day. Stop beating yourself up over it," Leo finished. I smiled slightly. His words did have a ring of truth to it, and that was comforting. But that didn't stop me from feeling sick. What I had done didn't have an excuse. I flopped over. I just wanted rest. I was sick and tired. I needed to sleep. I felt my eyes close, and let sleep embrace me.

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Third Person P.O.V.

"Is she ok?" Louise whispered as Leo closed the door.

"She'll be fine, I think. She just needs some rest, and likely, a lot of fresh air," Loe rubbed the back of his head. "The only thing we need to worry about is if her parents get wind of this." Louise shuttered at the thought. That seemed like a terrible idea.

"Is there anything else I should do?" Louise asked, frowning. She felt bad about her familiar's current shape. Especially after bringing up her parents. Louise had forgotten about them during this whole ordeal. Now, things were bad. Really, really bad.

"Honestly," Leo rubbed his head again. "I think it would be a good idea to bring her on Mr. Colbert and I's trip. It'll force her to interact, and at the least, get some fresh air. She needs it." Louise shot Leo an annoyed look, before sighing in defeat.

"She isn't going to want to, you know," Louise countered.

"What you want and what you get are two different things," Leo merely shrugged. "Now, please help me move her while she's still out."

"You do realize if she's going, I'm going to," Louise snapped. Leo chuckled.

"I would be surprised it you didn't."

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"Well this is more people than I expected," Leo shook his head. Was Isabella really this popular? That was actually quite impressive. Siesta, one of the servant girls, who was extremely nice and helpful, had come along, though she was already heading that Tarbs anyway. Guchie had come along as a 'protector'. Leo pretty much laughed that one off. Kirchie, with her strange crush on Isabella, came along as well, which meant, that by extension, Tabitha was also along for the ride.

Which meant there was hardly any room for the person they were here for! Of course, given that Isabella's normal sleeping habit was curling up into a ball, it wasn't that bad. But a half dozen people, and three familiars in a cart, giving a sleeping person plenty of space?

At least she hadn't woken up yet. It was going to be a disaster. Oh well, she needed this. The rest and fresh air would do her well. Hopefully, she stayed asleep until they arrived, if not then, afterwards.

Still, it didn't make it any easier. His friend was suffering. He didn't like that. One bit. Forget the giant mess up he left back home. But part of him doubted that is was all fel energy. If any at all. Regardless of the weapon she seemed to use, there was no after effects beforehand. So why would it start now? Unless it was some type of polibo effect. Her expecting fel taint, therefore, acting like she had fel taint. That made sense, to an extent. Of course, he wasn't there for the time she used that weapon, so it was something him couldn't exactly prove.

"Is she ok?" the voice came from Kirchie. Leo had to frown. Louise and Kirche were to two closest to Isabella in terms of positioning right now. Louise and Isabella were naturally close, and Kirche had a crush on the slightly older girl, so this wasn't a surprise.

"I'm not sure. I just don't know enough about what exactly she did to herself, but I think she'll recover from it," Leo sighed. "I just don't know enough about internalized fel magic to make a good diagnosis." Fel magic was very dangerous. Just the use of it could warp both the body, mind, and soul. Wielding it from within one's own body was risky, and certainly brought those changes far faster than just wielding it.

"What exactly is fel?" this time the question came from Louise. Leo was a bit surprised by this. Isabella was a lore buff, in both in terms of games and real life. It was shocking to think that Isabella hadn't talk Louise's ear off about the stuff.

"I'm surprised that Isabella hasn't already gone over that stuff," Leo said, earning a glare from Louise.

"She did. It's just that Isabella never went into that much detail about this fel magic stuff," Louise looked down. Isabell had actually seemed to turn away from it whenever it came up. Almost like she didn't want to talk about it.

"I know a little. Nowhere near as much as Isabella, but a little," Leo shock his head. This was going to be a mouthful.

"Both Demon Hunters and Warlocks wield fel magic. Fel itself comes from the Twisted Neither. It's kind of like a mirror dimension of sorts. It's extremely chaotic, and it's also the birthplace of demons," Leo got that far, being cut off by several gasps. He waited for the muttering to subside, before continuing.

"Due to the chaotic nature of the Twisted Neither, the magic pulled from it and used by it's inhabitants have some degree of advantage over the more orderly arcana magic. Back to both Warlocks and Demon Hunters. While the two make use of fel magic, how they wield it is very different. Warlocks use fel magic normally. They use it to control fel fire, and to summon and command demons. Demon Hunters, on the other hand, are more like demons. They bind a demon to their bodies, drinking one's blood and devouring one's heart. Warlocks may use the magic of demons, but Demon Hunters? Demon Hunters practically become one."

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P.O.V. Isabella

"Ok, who is going to wake her up?"

"I vote Guchie."

"What? Why me?"

"Because, face it, you are most expendable out of all of us. Now, come on, I want her to see what we found."

"I'm up," I said, opening an eye. What exactly was going on? Why exactly did they want me up? And most importantly, why wasn't I in Louise's room?

"Leo, you do realize this means I'm going to get to punch you now, right?" I glared at him annoyed, opening my eyes to the bright blue sky. The terrain was hilly, but covered with trees. In the distance, I could make out the peaks of mountains.

"You can do that later. Can you walk? This is pretty big," Leo was practically bouncing. Now I was really confused. I pushed myself up. I felt better. Still a little sick, but better. I moved myself from the position in the cart. Where, exactly did he drag me off to? The boy took off like a rocket, force Louise, Guchie, and I to keep pace.

"Any idea what is going on?" I ask was we jogged, making sure we kept Leo within our sights.

"He said you would know," Louise shrugged, struggling to keep up. Slowly but surely, something came into view. A building. It was massive, and had clearly aged quite a bit without care, if the vines on it were an indication. It looked like an airplane hanger. The massive doors were open wide, revealing the secrets within.

"No way," I stepped forward into the building. Hanger was a good comparison. Because that is what the building was. A hanger. With a large plane in the center. The plane was mostly green, with lines of white and yellow. The defining characteristic though were the red circles on it's wings and fuselage. This wasn't just any plane. This was a World War Two warplane. A Zero. A Japanese Zero.

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Stupid writer's block. I'm so sorry this nearly took a month. School, work, and my writer's block (I took a creative writing class) made this take far longer than it should have. Next chapter is the Battle of Tarbs. Other than that, I'm once again sorry for the lateness, and hopefully, I'll see you next time.


	19. Battle of Tarbes

Review answering time

Boyzilla: I don't have it beat yet, given the work, school, and of course, Warcraft I have going on at the moment. Congrats on nearly being done.

H2O Ferrum: Thank you. Louise may get more gaming time with Isabella, but that will quite a ways off. Also, nope. Just nope. On both accounts.

Now on with the show!

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"So you're a mechanic now?"

"Bite me, Leo!"

"You know that you don't have anything to bite."

Leo was forced to duck as I sent a wrench flying past his head. Sometimes his antics were a bit annoying. But he was the one with the nack for machines. And I was the one with the nack for weapons. In this case, there was no difference. This thing is a Zero fighter plane. Some could argue it was the one of the best fighter planes of the second World War. The fact that this thing was still in near perfect condition, too. Well, besides a few bullet holes in the fuselage, but that was fixable.

I still couldn't believe Siesta's own great-grandfather used to be the pilot of this thing. That would explain a few things, actually. Black hair and eyes were dominant genetic traits, but in Tristian, they were clearly extremely rare. Having a direct descendant from Japan explained exactly why her family had such an abnormal trait. Shame her great-grandfather wasn't around to see his old warplane fly again.

There were still two big problems. First wasn't that bad. The thing was nearly empty, in terms of fuel. Of course Professor Colbert had been working on replicating the 'Dragon's Blood' he had, so it wasn't going to be a long term problem. The second, well, was ammunition. Normally I wouldn't be too concerned with any type of fighting power. Professor Colbert wanted this to be a showpiece, and to be frank, so did I. But, Albion was likely going to make a move sooner rather than later, and this Warbird could be the advantage Tristain would need.

But unlike the first problem, this one didn't have an easy fix. Yeah, there were a few bullets left. Nowhere near enough for a prolonged engagement of any sort. Making the necessary bullet's here in Halkegina would be impossible. And I couldn't simply hop on over to Earth to grab some. I could imagine how well that would go. Hi, I want to buy bullet's for a plane nearly half a century old, and honestly, one that I shouldn't even have! That was assuming that those types of rounds would be for sell! Hell, that would assume they were still being made! Odds were, those types of rounds weren't being made. With that being the case, the only way to get more would be to go back in time, find rounds that were never used during World War Two, and then somehow, make sure nobody noticed.

Yeah, no. I was not causing the breakdown of space-time just to get some ammunition! I would just have to make do with what I had.

"Isabella. I know you're thinking about something," Leo said, reloading the machine guns with what little was left.

"I'm just concerned," I sighed, moving to pick up the wrench. It was only a matter of time before an attack came. Tristian was a soft and easy target for Albion's forces, which at this point, had likely been united under the rebel banner. Especially after the letter had been released, and the marriage had been called off.

"You really think something's coming, don't you," Leo's voice was concerned.

"It's basic strategy. Tristan has no allies, and even then, not a large army. We make for a perfect target," I grabbed the wrench, before stretching out my back. If Albion decided to invade right now, I didn't like our chances. We were outnumbered, outgunned, and likely fighting a force that had just gone through a civil war. Experienced and well trained soldiers, veruses an inexperienced army. Training was something that required time. Time that was no longer available.

Combine that with Louise and I being the most destructive things Tristan could bring to bear against the enemy (as far as I knew). Things weren't looking up. Louise's explosion's didn't have the power to level, or even dent, a large force. Even with the weapon's I had at my disposal, I wouldn't be able to take an army. But Albion would need to get it's troops here. It would need a foothold to accomplish that. If we could stop them from gaining that foothold, then what else could they do?

But was that possible? Could that really be done? How long would we need to repeat the process? Did we have the manpower for something like that?

"And you want this thing ready for battle," Leo looked down, clearly thinking about something. "You do realize that your mother would kill you if she gets word of this?" I balked. Yeah, that wouldn't be good at all. If my mother found out about this, then I was dead, and nothing about being in a different dimension was going to save me.

"Leo. I'm capable of using any weapon I touch. I will not sit this one out," I glared in annoyance.

"Fine. I think I might have an answer to the ammunition problem, anyway," Leo let out a sigh of defeat. I raised an eyebrow. That was strange. No beyond strange. Impossible was more like it.

"How exactly are you going to do that?" I questioned. Unless he had access to World War Two bullet making techniques, and was somehow able to produce them in mass, there was no way he could do this. Leo has done some thing's that some would consider impossible in the past, but this is beyond him.

"Trade secret I'm afraid," Leo teased, sticking out his tongue. My eyebrow twitched.

"Leo!" I reared back, faking another wrench throw as a horse came rushing into the courtyard. It was Guchie. And he looked panicked. This soon? Already? We hadn't even put plans in place yet. This was too soon. Then again, I didn't expect to let Albion's new government to let us twiddle our thumbs for any length of time.

"We're in trouble!" Guchie shouted, struggling to bring the horse under control. I placed the wrench on my shoulder.

"So, how far in over our heads are we?" Leo almost seemed to mock the situation.

"The nation of Albion has been renamed Reconquista, and declared war on Tristian!" Louise has just stepped into the courtyard, our eyes quickly meeting. We had just ran out of time.

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"So you wish to use the Dragon's Plumage in the war against Albion?" Colbert frowned. This was something I was afraid of. While the Zero still belonged to Siesta's family, it would be up to Professor Colbert to give permission for me to use it. Seeing as he appeared to have an advergence to violence, I hoped I would be able to talk him into it.

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't think it would be needed," I said, keeping eye contact. Colbert frowned, clearly not happy with the situation. Not that I blamed him. He wasn't too pleased when he learned that the Zero was actually a weapon of war, either. Earth had plenty of wars in the past, which I don't think Leo really had done the best of jobs preparing him for that revelation.

"You know exactly how I feel about this, correct?" He said, the way his eyes caught the light looking intimidating. I stopped myself from shuttering. Colbert was scary when he wanted to be. It almost made me wonder what pieces of his past he kept under wraps.

"I know exactly how you feel, which is why I'm asking," keeping move voice level, I kept his gaze. "I know you don't like killing, and that's all war is. Killing. But I like this place. Princess Henrietta is a good person, and she doesn't deserve what is happening to her. Louise doesn't deserve this either. The least I can to is shoulder some of the burden."

"The phrase, it's better ask for forgiveness then to ask permission? I could ask for forgiveness and take the thing. But I'd much rather not lose a friend."

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P.O.V. Louise

I watched from a corner as Leo and Isabell looked over a map of Tristian. The two were bickering, no, arguing, over something.

"If I was going to attack anywhere, it would be here," Leo gabbed at a portion of the map. I frowned. Were they talking strategy? "It would complement the aerial advantage Reconquista is going to want to keep."

"The area too mountainous. Not only would it be an obvious target, an earth mage would be able to bring up a few cannons right underneath them," my familiar's confidence was clear, and she was somewhat correct, as well. It would take at least a triangle, if not square level earth mage to perform such a daring, if not insane plan.

"Still makes more sense than what you are proposing," he looked directly at her. "In the open, those dragon's of theirs make for an easy target." I frowned. Leo was correct. While dragon's were no easy target, if they were caught off guard or on the ground, a fight would be fairly swift.

"And you assume that dragons are the only thing we are going to be dealing with. This place has airships Leo. Flying Ships of the Line and Galleons. Likely armed to the teeth with more cannon's than we can shake a stick at. Over a low lying area? Can you imagine the range and devastation that could have?" Isabell's voice sounded grim to my ears. It made sense. Using navy forces to support a ground invasion wasn't unheard of, but it was certainly uncommon to do so. But given this was Reconquista, uncommon might be something to expect.

"Ok, I concede that. But if that's the case, how are you going to avoid both cannonfire and dragon fire at the same time?" Leo was clearly concerned, if he was asking that question. It was a concern I held as well. Would she be able to do so?

"Simple. I don't. Remove one from the equation, and deal with the other," she smirked, clearly pleased with herself. I paused. What was that supposed to mean?

"And how are you going to do that?" Leo had become annoyed at this point, crossing his arms in a display of defiance.

"Leo, we has an A6M Zero fighter on our hands. Think about it," Isabell grinned madly. No, I didn't have any idea what was going on in her head. But she clearly expected Leo to know.

"Oh. Oh!" a look of realization dawned on Leo's face. What exactly did he realize? He started laughing, face turning red. He made a gesture with his hands. "You're going to go right over their heads!"

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P.O.V. Isabella

"What do you mean they landed at Tarbes?" I shouted. On one hand, Tarbs had the exact description of where I expected an attack. Low lying area, giving the cannons plenty of range, and allowing them to have maximum control over the area, making the most of their skilled dragon riders.

What I hadn't anticipated was an attack over a populated area. In hindsight, it made perfect sense. Missed shots might hit civilians, and it also have them a foothold that had plenty of food, water, and other important resources. Reconquista's forces could hold the village hostage with relative ease. That was a strategy that I wouldn't put them past using at the moment.

"Princess Hentriania has mobilized our forces to counter attack, but Reconquista still has a significant military advantage," Old Man Osmond pinched his brow. I definitely felt for he. Today was not going to be a fun day.

"Leo, how is the A6M looking?" I turn around, looking at my best friend. He grinned wildly.

"Armed, gassed, and ready for take off!" he declared with glee. Something told me he was more excited about this whole thing than I was. Then again, he did say he made a few modifications to it. Something about reinforcing what little armor the plane had. I wouldn't complain about that. The A6M Zero was designed around speed and mobility. It did not take bullet's of any kind well. I'd hate to think what dragon fire could do if one managed to land a direct hit.

"Good," there was little else to say. "Meet me down in the courtyard in five minutes. It's time to get this started."

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Ammunition? Check. Fuel? Check. Rambunctious co-pilot? Check. Enough room to take off? Most likely.

"We are clear for take off!" I shout, turning the lever, the engines beginning to rev up. The propeller began to spin, wind being forced aside. Before the roaring wind got too loud, I heard something.

"Wait!" it was Louise. I had to bite back a frown. What was she doing here? No, I knew exactly what she was doing here. Which meant I had one of two equally unappealing choices. The first was get into a very long, very drawn out argument, wasting both time and lives, about why Louise shouldn't come with us. The second, was letting Louise come into a war zone with us.

And you know what, I wasn't in the mood for an argument. I would deal with whatever parental retribution came my way later. Her explosions were sadly, the advantage we would need against the much larger ships anyway. It was a risk, and it wasn't one I wanted to take. But, given the alternatives, I was going to have to.

"I'm coming with you!" It wasn't even a order. It was a demand. I slowly opened the hatch of the cockpit, pushing it back and letting the air rush in. This was stupid, reckless, and there were a few hundred other reasons why I shouldn't do this. Most important of them is that she could every well end up getting killed. And I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. But she wanted to be here for the same reason I was. To protect those she cared about. If I was doing the same thing, who was I to deny her doing what she wants to do.

I extended my hand, pulling her into the cockpit. It was a close fit, with three people inside. But it was doable.

"Welcome aboard," I grinned, closing down the hatch as the propeller's noise continued to increase, nearly to painful levels. The engine roared as the plane began to a move. It barreled down the courtyard, going faster and faster. I yanked back on the lever, the nose rising upward, sending us over the wall and into the blue, open sky.

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"This is fast!" Derf declared. This was the first time since Wardes that he had actually spoke. Shame I didn't get to use him more often. "Dragons don't compare to this!" I took a look behind use, observing a dark blue dot getting smaller and smaller with each passing second. Sylphid, prephase? No, I doubt Tabitha would do something like that.

"Good. All the more of an advantage for us, then," I smiled. This thing could reach speeds greater than three hundred miles per hour.

"Less talking, more flying north by northeast!" Leo ordered, pointing in the direction of Tarbes. I changed course, shifting towards the small village.

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Thing's were not looking good. Even though I couldn't make out everything, but from what I saw, whatever air forces that Princess Henrietta had already been wiped out. Were we really that outclassed? If so, it was time to even the odds into our favor.

"Buckle up!" I nearly shouted to get my voice to carry over the roaring of the engine. I didn't wait for a response, as I pulled straight up. I ignored the sudden screaming of my two co-pilots as the plane stalled out, its upward flight turning into a nosedive. The engine kicked back on, the propellor screaming back to life. I lined up the shot and fire, a short burst of bullet's erupting from the two smaller seven millimeter machine guns. The burst found it's mark, punching holes straight through the dragon and it's rider, sending both plummeting to the ground. I pulled into a turning roll, quickly flanking around two other dragon riders that had been caught off guard. Another chain of seven millimeter rounds ripped into them, knocking the two out of the sky.

The speed this thing had was amassing! I turned again, this time lining up a shot using the much larger twenty millimeter cannon. The cannon roared to life, the firepower ripping through both dragon and rider that happened to be unlucky enough to be in my sights. What remained of the attack force had begun to scatter in panic, not expecting such a display. The cleanup was swift, even with the three warships turning their attention to us, rather than the mages below.

I swerved up as the cannon's roared to life, attempting to hit the Zero with a barrage of cannonballs. As powerful as things were, they were not designed to hit a small, moving target like the Zero. Breaking past the largest off the ships, I dove into a strafing run, opening up with the stronger twenty millimeter cannons. The destructive rounds blew holes through the ship's deck. It wasn't much. Or, at least, wouldn't have been much, if one of the rounds didn't hit a powder keg. The resulting explosion was larger than anything Louise had done, ripping the ship apart for the inside out. It was strangely beautiful, in a way. Still, I wasn't going to get lucky twice. Going through four ship's worth of dragons had left me starving with the seven millimeter, and even if I wasn't, the smaller gun's wouldn't do enough damage to targets of this size anyway.

"I'm not going to get that lucky twice!" I shouted, keeping above the ships. More than a few mages had already begun to line the deck, forcing me to dodge several projectiles of wind, fire, and ice. Some of the fire spell's exploded around the plane, much like anti-aircraft artillery. The plane shook with each blast, rattling the cockpit, as I swerved to avoid even more spells. At this point, it was coming down to one of two very bad situations. Lower altitude and have to deal with the cannons, or stay up top and deal with the mages. Another spell flew past the cockpit. Damnit, these mage's were nearly taking me out of the sky! Cannon's it was! I broke into a dive, getting underneath the largest of the three warships as the runes on my hands began to glow, brighter than they had ever glown before.

"I… I... ," Louise stammered, as the light grew brighter and brighter, taking over the entire cockpit in blinding radiance. "I'm not going to let you fight alone anymore!" Energy was building around Louise.

"It's happening," I faintly heard Derf's whisper. He know what was happening?

"Derf, what's going on!" I shouted, weaving side to side to avoid cannon fire raining down around the Zero.

"You, master of Gandalfr, are a void mage!" Derf declared, as Louise stood up. Almost by instinct, I knew exactly what she was going to do. I pulled open the cockpit at lightning fast speeds, giving Louise the actual range.

"Leo, cover your eyes and ears, now! This is going to be,"... BOOM! I covered my eyes as Louise's spell ripped through the fleet above us. I didn't even dare to look. The resulting shockwave assaulted the plane, forcing me into an even more rapid descent. Heat and raw pressure attacked my senses, then nothing. I opened my eyes. Nothing was left. Just open sky.

This? This was the power of a void mage? This was beyond anything I ever could have imagined. Could have anticipated. What exactly had we just released upon the world? Louise's body suddenly slumped over, only for me to catch her in my arms. That spell had taken a lot out of her, it seemed. She looked so peaceful, resting like this. Time to get her back to the Academy so she can rest.

Suddenly, something pricked at the back of my mind. Something dark, twisted.

"Isabella, I don't think this is over yet!" Loe pointed at two black dots, now beginning to fall out of the sky like bombs. I aimed the plane downward lighting on of the ones up with the twenty millimeter, which had no effect, bouncing off a shield of some short. Really? This thing was becoming more and more useless with each passing second. Whatever those were, I was going to deal with them on the ground.

I touched down behind the army. Not to far, but enough to keep a sleeping Louise out of the immediate combat zone. I looked out over the field, my jaw dropping from shock. Ok. Whatever it was to deserve this, I'm sorry already.

"Are those?" Leo questioned, facial expression mimicking my own. I doubted he would have signed up if he knew exactly what Reconquista brought to the field today. Then again, I would have reservations too, if I knew they would bring Faceless Ones. Faceless Ones! How did they obtain Faceless Ones! Or keep them in line!

"Yeah," I said simply, drawing Derf. The one on the far left of the army took notice in my arrival, knocking back the forces around it with a pulse of shadow magic. Heavily armored soldiers, some of them mages, were scattered like leaves on the wind.

' _The weapon shall lead to the master's fall!'_ the being mentally bellowed, causing me to clutch my head. I growled in annoyance. What was that supposed to mean? Was it a lie? Half-truth? All of the truth? Old Gods and their servants always had a way of telling just exactly what they wanted you to know, so you would do exactly what they wanted. One way or another, it was going to need to die. Fast.

Spellcasting was no longer an option. Louise was drained to the point where she had passed out. It looks like I was going to need to get a little bit more personal.

"Leo, stay back and protect Louise, I'll handle this," I didn't even wait for a response, Derf glowing with energy. The blade split in half, then began to grow, getting larger and larger. The two newly formed sword's were massive, their length comparable to Louise's height. They were heavy was well, likely weighing more than she did. But in my hand's they felt light. Armor started to form on my body. Stronger and more durable than steel, it was certainly heavier too. Not that it mattered when my runes were active like this.

I let out a roar, leaping into the fry without any hesitation, bringing the two massive warblades down on my target, only to be blocked by a barrier of shadow. The blades began to glow with light, causing the spell to fall apart like paper. I screamed again, pushing my attack, the blades biting and cutting through blighted flesh. While the beast was certainly larger, each blow from the blades, both forged by the Titan Keeper Oydin, did more damage than a dozen mages. Each strike reinvigorated the soldier's around me, as they joined me in my attack.

Spell's began to fall around the creature, keeping its attention spread out. It's defense's had weakened. It could no longer ignore the mages, and it certainly couldn't ignore me. The creature kept it's composure, however. A mistake at this point would be disastrous. I was forced to take more than a few direct blasts of shadow magic. What pain I suffered only made me feel stronger as I continued to rain blow after blow on it's fleshy body. I lept upwards, finally burying the two massive blades into it's skull.

I looked around, my temper and battle rage dying down as cheering came to life. What the? What happened to the other… Oh. Well, it looks like Leo was going to have some explaining to do.

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P.O.V. Third Person

Leo let out a sigh of annoyance. Louise wasn't the only one tired of Isabella running off into battle without backup. And she was the one that called him reckless. Ok, the label still fit. But it was a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Because there really wasn't a better why to put exactly what he did. And seeing how he messed that up, too.

The original idea was fairly simple. Create a temporary augment by fusing leftover magical energy from Louise, with technology. Not exactly the simplest of processes, but, with some clever work, it was doable.

What he, or infact, anyone else had counted on, is how exactly it ended up doing. Leo wasn't quite sure himself what he had managed to accomplish. His memories of when he was there were fuzzy at best, non-existent at worst.

What he did know, is even outside this place, he still was certainly a lot better than he was before. Increased strength, speed, and durability, alongside rapid recovery from wounds. Sure, Loe's sense of pain had become very dull, but that didn't matter when he could recover from most injuries that could kill a person in a matter of a few minutes. Right, and he also had a cool hammer to go with it.

No, it wasn't really a hammer. Leo gazed at the weapon as it formed in his hand. It certainly had the shape of one, but it was comprised of gears, pistons, springs, rods and over, smaller moving bits and pieces. It was a work of art, and a work of engineering. It suited him perfectly.

Leo turned around. Louise was safe here. Isabella was doing a good job of keeping the first Faceless One off balance with the Warswords of the Valarjar, the twin blades taking out massive chunks of it's target. But that still left the second one running amuck. The gears in the hammer sprang to life, grinding against one another.

It was well past time for him to join the fray. He slammed the hammer into the ground, a blast of steam sending him upward. Gravity quickly took over as he spun downward. The Faceless One blocked the attack with one of it's tentacle arms, and Leo smirked. Gears in the head of the hammer enlarged themselves, pinching the fleshy limb between them. Leo flipped a switch on the haft, causing the gears to start spinning.

"Gear Grind!" Leo shouted, the downward force combined with the newfound sawing, cleaved through bone and flesh alike. The mental roar of pain nearly stunned him, but Leo recovered fast enough to block the incoming strike from the second limb. Like with the one before it, the turning gears tore through the arm like it was paper.

He grinned. This was almost to… Leo was suddenly send flying as a blast of shadow magic hit him squarely in the chest. Leo let out a wince of pain as he felt his body pull itself back together. Another blast of steam was all it took to launch him forward, taking the Faceless One off guard before the few seconds he need. The hammerhead grew once more, gears picking up speed to even greater speeds. The blow landed in the abominations midsection. In seconds, it was torn clean in half. Such a blow would keep it down for good.

Leo grinned, raising up the hammer as the gears sprunk down and stopped spinning. Shame about his shirt though. He liked it. Cheering went up around them. The fight, for now, was over.

The war, on the other hand, had only just begun.

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I got this done before Pokemon Sun and Moon came out! (Does a little happy dance). Nineteen chapters, and I've only just gotten through season one. Just wow.

I want to thank everyone that has dropped reviews, or has followed or favorited this story. Your support means alot to me. Even if you haven't done those things, simply reading this and hopefully enjoying it, means so much.

It might be a little bit before I update again (Sun and Moon, finals are coming up, I need to start working on the next chapter of Illidari, ect).

So to celebrate getting this far, how would you guys like a Question and Answer section? You can ask two questions to any of the characters, or too me, and I'll do my best to answer them in character, so long as they don't go into spoiler territory. Drop a review, or send me a Private Message. Two questions per person.

I hope you all enjoyed, and hopefully you'll come back for the next chapter!

P.S. The Ashbringer is coming soon.


	20. Coronation Day

Boyzilla: All will be explained in due time.

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"This doesn't make sense."

"I know."

"This doesn't make any sense!"

"You already said that!"

"Then how? How is it possible for Faceless ones! Faceless ones, Isabella, to be here?"

"I don't know! If I knew, I would have said something already! And it doesn't mean I don't have any questions for you, either? How did you get that weapon?"

"I don't know. It just happened."

"Bull and crap. When you say something like 'it just happened', what you actually mean is you messed up and you're not sure how you messed up."

"I know you're mad, but I don't know what happened. I just know that it shouldn't have."

"Mad! Mad! I'm a little bit more than just mad! I already have enough on my plate Leo, without worrying about whatever you did to yourself with that science experiment of yours! Do you know how unethical that is?"

"It would have been unethical if I tried it on someone else."

"It doesn't matter. You messed up so bad, a lot of people have suffered. You better hope this is something you can fix."

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Louise's eyes snapped open. Everything hurt. Her head. Her stomach. Her, everything. She had never felt like this. Louise began pushing herself up. This. This was her room. How did she get here? She remembered the plane, something flying through her mind. Then a flash. Then nothing. She could feel the words in her head. The spell bounced in her mind, power ready to be called on in a moment's notice.

A light snore drew Louise's attention. The light off one of the moon's illuminated the room, rays falling onto a person. It was Isabella, with only her head resting on the sheets. The light snoring that came from her mouth confirmed she was asleep. Louise's eyes softened slightly. Was it all a dream? Louise winced. No. The pain was too real for what have happened to be a dream. And Isabella had never done anything like this before. Which meant she was concerned about something. Something likely related to her not remembering anything past the flash of light.

But it was late. If Isabella was sleeping this soundly, she didn't want to wake her familiar. Louise may have wanted answers, but that could wait. She just needed a bit more rest.

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P.O.V. Isabella

My eyes pulled themselves open as the sunlight poured onto my face. I let out a yawn and a stretch, raising my head from the bed sheets. The first thing I did was look at Louise. She was still asleep, like she had been for the past several days. The spell. The powerhouse of a spell had taken a lot out of her.

"Isabell?" a voiced questioned as I opened the door. My face whipped around, as Louise tiredly rubbed her eyes. I felt tears beginning to form in my eyes as I sprunge across the room, taking Louise clean off the bed. My back crashed into the stoney floor. It hurt, but I didn't care! She was awake! After three days, she was finally awake!

"Ow! Isabell, let go!" she struggled in my grasp. Finally, I loosened my grip, tears still brimming in my eyes.

"Are you ok?" I looked at her, trying to figure out what had kept her under for so long. But like before, nothing at all.

"Isabell, I'm fine! Why are you acting like this?" Louise demanded. She deserved to know that answer. Of course she didn't know why I was so worried.

"Louise, you were out for three days!" I answered. She paused instantly.

"What?" she stammered, her voice unsure. The truth seemed to shock her, if only for a moment.

"What happened?" Louise demanded again, clearly in panic now. Not that I blamed her, seeing as her best friend was on the battlefield that day.

"We won, so the princess is safe," I said, adding a mental 'for now' along with it. She was the leader, which made her a target. A big target.

"Long story short, you used a spell to blow up the three warships. Two of which had faceless ones on them, so Leo and I killed those." Louise bot the explanation. Almost.

"Wait, Leo?" she questioned, her face showing complete confusion. Louise was aware of what the Faceless Ones were. Loosely, anyway. Which likely made everything all the more confusing. Though it wasn't like it was just as confusing for me. Whatever Leo could do now made no sense whatsoever.

"Apparently he can create a hammer out of tin air now. However," I picked Louise up bridal style, causing the girl to shrek and blush violently. "You need food and rest. I'll be back shortly."

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Louise had made excellent recovery. While I knew she hadn't been out of it for that long, I still was concerned. I was the one that let her come onto the battlefield, rather than tell her to stay here and keep safe. Yeah, Louise wouldn't have liked it, but it was certainly far better than having her unconscious for three days straight.

Hindsight was twenty-twenty, after all. And as of the moment, it was my job to make sure that type of thing never happened again. The second, of course was to make sure she had recovered in time for Princess Henrietta's coronation. I had started to worry that Louise wasn't going to wake up. At all.

And I felt responsible. Not only had I put her in danger, I've nearly signed her up for other future assignments that might be extremely dangerous. Then again, knowing Louise, she might have just done them anyway. And now that she knows exactly what she is capable of, well. If the war with Albion, I mean Reconquista, goes forward, then Louise was likely willing to take part, putting herself straight into the mouth of the lion. And I wasn't in any place to stop her in that regard. She was old enough to make her own choices. I was old enough to respect them. And I was plenty old enough to stand by her side, if need be.

"Isabell, we need to leave! The Princess's parade will start in a few hours!"

Like I said. Excellent recovery.

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The capital was crowded people not only filling the streets but also taking up every available window, and rarely, rooftop. Back on Earth, this was something I would have avoided like the plague, and for good reason. I simply despised large groups of people like this. To many people, far too much noise.

But it was nice, seeing this many people like this. I mean, after the country was just attacked not that long ago, and yet, so many people were here. They were happy. This was a once in a lifetime event, after all. Though, I couldn't help but look around. While I certainly had my doubts that someone, anyone, would try to assassinate the Princess out in the open. Then again, the powder keg that started off the first World War was an assassination in broad daylight. During a parade. After several failed attempts.

Ok, moving on. Still, it was something that continued to poke at the back of my mind. History is, no, brain, stop it. I'm not here to worry about every single little thing. I'm here because it's a friends, well, maybe more like acquaintances special day. I heard shouting to my left, causing me to turn my head. Thanks to my height, I could see over most of the crowd with relative ease. Louise had moved away from me slightly, trying to get to the front of the masses of people lining the road.

The horse drawn carriage was slowly making it's way up the street. Expect it wasn't drawn by horses. The unicorns, again? It makes a statement, I guess. And I have to admit, it looks pretty fancy, too.

A light tap on my shoulder snapped me out of my thoughts. I turned my head slightly, only to find one of the queen's musketeers. She gestured behind her, pointing towards the palace. I frowned. Something was clearly off. The princess was here, so what was so important at the palace? Her frown grew to match my own, before she slipped a note. I opened it carefully, before looking at the contents.

Well, that isn't good news. I looked up, before pocketing the scrap of paper. I nodded my head, quickly following.

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The underground chamber smelled. No way about it, it literally gave off an odor that screamed 'Warning: Someone as just died'. Which only confirmed the notes information. Little revolutionary leader Cromwell was dead in his cell, from unknown causes. Even as I entered the depths of the dungeon, it was pretty clear something was off. Like how this had gone unnoticed. I was approached by another member of the guard, this one with short, blonde hair.

"Agnes, Captain of the Musketeer Corps," she held out her hand. It was pretty clear she was on edge.

"Isabella," I said simply, shaking her hand while I was at it. I took a look at the corpse of what was once Cromwell. Looking at it, I was surprised that it held much of a smell to began with. He looked like a mummy, his skin dried and wrinkled, clinging against his skeleton.

"When was he found like this?" I questioned. It didn't make any sense for the body to be in the shape it was in. A corpse decomposes under normal circumstances. It does not turn into a mummy.

"This morning. The guard bringing in the morning meals to the prisoners found him like this," Anges said. "The door was still locked when he arrived." Well, that narrows it down quite a bit. No wonder why this was so worrying. Clearly no stab wounds, and if this was a poison, it was certainly one hell of a poison. That was doubtful, which left only one logical explanation.

"Well, it's clear that he could see his attacker, and based on the fact they were able to kill him without entering his cell, means we are looking at a mage. And if I had to guess, that mage would have to be a mage with water specialization, seeing as the corpse appears to be dried of any fluids," I stated simply as Anges rolled her eyes.

"So you can only tell us what we already know," she let out a huff of annoyance. What was she expecting? It's not like I would be able to do much anyway. I mean, they likely knew for more stuff about this type of thing than I did. Well, more like it was a guarantee. Though I should be flattered that somebody thought I was important enough to bring in.

It is still, just, so, odd. How, exactly, did this happen? The killer got in, got out, without anyone seeing them, and only murdered a single prisoner. I mean, it was a very important prisoner, but why just that? If someone could do that, why not just, you know, kill everyone important? The country would be in complete chaos, making for an easy target. So, why didn't they? Why kill a prisoner completely undetected, and nothing else? Strategically, that made no sense. Unless something else was at work. I hope not. That would only mean Reconquista was merely a pawn in an even bigger plot.

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"So, what is that?" I asked, looking down at the small book that Louise held. The Princess, no correction, Queen, had decided to give us a carriage to take us back to the Academy. Seeing how late it was, I really wasn't going to reject the offer. Hopefully that trip would be much more smooth than last time.

"I think it's the Book of Will passed down from the ancestors. Her majesty gave it to me," Louise said, holding on the book with two hands. "She said it would be better if I held onto it." I raised an eyebrow as Louise opened the small tome.

"According to Headmaster Osmond, the scurtitures of Void Magic should be written here," Louise's brow furrowed at the blank pages. It was kind of cute.

"Blank? In an odd way, that makes sense," I said, causing Louise to look at me.

"What do you mean?" she asked clearly curious.

"Void is nothingness. There is nothing on the pages of a spellbook meant to hold Void magic," I shrugged before letting out a yawn. "We can worry about it in the morning." I felt my eyes close. A quick little name won't hurt.

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This took a lot longer than it needed to. I blame finals. And Pokemon.

Not much to say, and I hope to see you all next time!


	21. Ashbringer

Boyzilla: Thank you. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.

Towtwuker: You haven't heard of, oh, I see what you did there.

Quinn: Thank you. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

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Sleep was a nice thing. It allowed the body to recover itself after a day of hard work and collect the brain's thoughts. As such, getting enough sleep was healthy. And when one was put on the princess's alert list, sleep was something to be obtained whenever you could get it. I planned on trying to get used to the new change in priorities. What I didn't expect was the sudden wake up call of the door being kicked down off it's hinges! One hell of a wake up call. One that got me up, at least. By my nature, I was a heavy sleeper.

I grumbled internally. It was going to take a bit more than that to get my up and moving so damn early.

"Her majesty has been kidnapped by an unknown person!" the voice belonged to Agnes. And that would in fact due it. My brain took a few second to register the information, but once the task was complete, I already began to move. Clothing, something more hardy and durable than normal. Kidnapping meant that there would be a need for tracking.

Thankfully, Agnes stepped out, giving us both time to change. So thankful I spend some money on hardier cloths. Denim jeans, a fairly normal shirt, but throw a normal jacket over that, and I was fairly set. Louise's clothes were her normal standard. For something like this, I had my doubts about their practicality, but it wasn't like we had time for this! Every second counted.

"What do you mean by that the princess has been kidnapped?" Louise was clearly panicked, and rightfully so. Even more so, in hindsight. We knew that someone had killed a prisoner. Could they be the kidnapper? If so, why hadn't they struck earlier? Why now? The heir would just as great as a hostage as the queen. So why wait?

"This is my fault," Agnes looked down. She was beating herself up over the issue. She was Hentria's guardian, and right now, she who knows where in who knows hands. "Currently, my subordinates are searching for them. Her majesty's kidnapper is currently heading towards Lagdorian Lake. I frowned. That lake? Even with the water level lowered, it was still massive. Why would someone try to make an escape that way? In fact, it would play to Henrietta's strength, being a water mage.

"In any case, in order to keep a lid on this issue, only the gunpowder squadron and you two will be saving her majesty," she continued. Such a small group? It certainly made sense, but it felt like we were going to be walking into a trap. "Can you help?"

On one hand, likely a trap. On the other, they had the princess. They either kill us all or get their original objective. A win-win setup. Again, Louise wasn't going to take no for an answer. She would go on ahead, regardless of risk, for her friend. Of course, I wasn't going to let her blatantly walk into a trap. Plus, I couldn't forget that Louise herself was also a target.

"Of course! The princess is in danger! How can we ignore that?" Louise crossed her arms, seemingly annoyed that Anges even had to ask. The we part of her statement caught my attention though. It looks like Louise was at least starting to predict my behavior. Henrietta was a caring person and ruler. She would make for a better Queen than most Kings. I was going to make sure she got there at least.

Thankfully, we still had the zero fighter. Though Colbert and Leo had both taken to tinkering around with the thing, seeing as it wasn't needed most of the time. That going to have to stop now. I didn't want to take away the professor's new toy, but I didn't have much of a choice.

"I haven't put everything back in yet!" the professor shouted against the scream of the propeller. This wasn't going to end well, I could already tell.

"So long as it can fly, it'll have to do!" I bellowed. Leo had taken a retreat, offering to come along on the mission, but that changed the moment I informed him on the possibility of undead. I mean, something was fishy, and I didn't know what. But seeing as the Ring of Andvari had been stolen recently, meant I wasn't going to take chances.

But if I was correct, that meant I could pull out a very special weapon. Honestly, I was borderline surprised that I hadn't got the opportunity to use it yet. Then again, the weapon was so good at what it did, keeping it a secret made sense. And come on, this was a fantasy universe. I would have been very disappointed if I didn't have at least one run in with the unliving. At the moment, I was giving undead only a fifty-fifty shot at this point. Still, I hoped that wasn't the case. Zombies, especially the more modern ones creeped me out to no end.

"Leo added something to increase speed using gunpowder!" Professor Colbert shouted. Really? That was nice of him. The improvement would be come in handy getting over the school's walls. At least, that was their intended purpose.

"This isn't time for chit chat! The Princess is in danger! We need to go!" Louise had found herself a place in my lap. Her protectiveness was certainly admirable.

"We're off!" I shouted, closing off the cockpit. The plane began to move slowly, picking up speed with every second. I pushed the button, thrusters screaming to life. We barely made it over the wall, nearly knocking off both the landing gear and the thrusters.

"Do you really think there will undead?" Louise's question was faint. Over the roar of the engines, I could barely hear it. It was likely fear. Understandable. Standard zombie plagues, doomsday scenarios created in fictional works, were creepy enough. Necromancy? In magical universe, anyone to dabled in such arts were villains, with few exceptions. The strongest of them could easily bring worlds to their knees.

"It's certainly possible enough for me to bring it up. The Ring of Andvari is missing, Louise. An artifact like that going missing before the princess is kidnapped is something I'd count on being a coincidence," I said. I didn't really believe in coincidences in the first place, especially ones like this.

The plane lurched suddenly and I growled in annoyance. It looks like two people had taken out some key parts. The Zero would hold together for the time being, at least. We were still making good time. I didn't want to have to make an emergency landing in the lake, but if it needed to be done, I would. A massive blast caught my attention, an eruption of earth sent high into the sky. That was not a sign of things going well.

"Isabell," Louise said, looking at the mess. It was an unspoken order. Something was going wrong down there, and we needed to be there, now! I pushed the plane to go faster. Reckless, maybe, but we had places to be, and if it really came down to it, there were a few spells I could think of to stop both of us from plummeting to our deaths. We'd lose the plane though, and nobody really wanted that. Well, we didn't. The universe seemed to have other plans as the engine sputtered, propeller stalling in mid flight. Well, crap.

The nose dive occurred swiftly thereafter. I struggled with the controls, trying to pull the falling mass of metal out it's wild attraction to gravity. Between that fact the engine was refusing to restart, and Louise's outright panic, it had beginning to look like bailing out and going on foot was the only remaining option.

A powerful blast of wind suddenly sprung from nowhere, the gale knocking the aircraft upwards, finally allowing us to balance out. My head spun around, looking for the source of our salvation, before noticing a bright blue dragon. The dragon meant Tabitha. Tabitha meant Kirchie. For once, I wasn't going to be that annoyed. After all, even though Louise and I weren't in any danger, her pursuit had saved the fighter. Plus, if my undead hunch was correct, some extra fire would not be something I would be opposed to. It was an asset that Tristan would need in the coming conflict.

The redhead's mouth moved. Inside the cockpit, it was impossible to hear her, but I probably could guess. I looked at Tabitha, nodding my thanks. She responded in kind. I made a juster toward the lake, and our altitude began to lower. Louise huffed, almost acting like an angry kitten. It was adorable, in a strange way. Even so, I needed a way to keep the small plane afloat.

"Derf?" I questioned, as the sword seemed to nod. A shaman weapon would do. Any shaman weapon. The lack of distinction made it seemed to cause it to gravitate toward the specter once more. I indulged it. Water surged from nowhere, inky dark liquid taking the form of a mace and shield. Louise shuttered in my lap, as if drinking from the well's power. Maybe it wasn't a good idea after all. The brief incarnation was all it took, the plane, alongside Louise and I, could now walk on water.

"Princess!" Louise had moved onto the plane's wing as I glared. I hate being right. Wales. Prince freaking Wales! He was dead! And yet, here he was. This was bad. Really bad. Water surged around me, creating a suit of chainmail. There was no time to switch weapons, at least until I got to shore. Wales raised his wand. I raised my scepter. Wind and water crashed together, both spells tearing into each other like a pack of wild animals. And the prince was rapidly being overpowered. Even if he was tapping onto the scepter's magic increasing abilities, it still paled before the artifact's own. The lake behind her, the scepter, and the wrath of the water spirit was more than sufficient. Wind was finally battered aside as the liquid torrent found it's mark, sending Wales flying backwards. He crashed into a tree, the force being more than sufficient to turn a normal human to death.

"Louise move!" I shouted, the two of us making a break for the shoreline. That strike should have been more than enough to bring a walking corpse down, but Wales had already begun to pull himself up. Regenerating zombies? Smart plan on whoever enchanted that ring, but that didn't make it any easier. That left two options. Ignite them with fire the burned faster than the magic could mend them, or simply rekill them in a single strike. Option two would normally be impossible, and for option one, we only had one fire mage.

A loud thud signalled the arrival of Tabitha and Kirche into the fray.

"Standing?" Tabitha's voice was quiet and questioning. Wales had finished pulling himself up, looking none the worse for wear, even if his cloths told a different story.

"Undead. I watched him die. Even if he wasn't, no normal person would have," I was cut off by crack. Water surged forward, creating a barrier between us and the woods. Earth, fire, air, and water impacted the swirling mass, each strike nullified. Wales's own magic joined in, a powerful windstorm lashing against the roiling waters. Wind crashed against water, but the spell did very little.

The defense was holding, but all it had really done was box us in. We had the lake at our back, with a powerful wave of water magic in front of us. My original plan was to wait for Agnes, Ideally catching the kidnappers between both groups. But after that explosion, her group was ether wounded at best, or killed at worst. So it was just us veruses a group of zombies.

"Kirchie! Tabitha! Keep those four off me for a bit! When I say switch, hold off Wales!" the undead prince was the biggest threat here by for. The four other mages were dot, maybe line. Not only was Wales from the looks of it a triangle class, he was a strong one. Seeing as he was fighting in a war during the conflict, it was understandable. I felt the two's spells take form. The water's parted, empowered ice and fire launching through the gaps at our attackers.

I whipped the liquid shield around forming it into a massive sphere. Gallons of water shot forward, encasing Wales inside a bubble. Water mages seemed to have no imagination. Each element was dangerous in their own right, but water could be used to easily drown an attacker, if enough existed. That wasn't my goal though. The dead had no use for breath. Slowly, the orb began to shrink. Not because water was leaving. No, I was increasing the pressure. Even if nobody could hear it outside, it was easy to tell his body was take damage faster than it could mend itself. Bones cracked. Organs burst. Killing him like this wasn't what I was going for. I would need the lake, and maybe then some, to completely overpower him at this point. But I could cripple him. At least enough to give Tabitha and Kirche an upper hand.

"Switch, now!" the two listen, fire and ice lancing out towards Wales. I couldn't focus on that. The water fell, as Derf returned to his natural state.

"Partner, you know about any swords that work really well against undead?" the question was rhetorical to a degree. We both knew the answer. If swords could look smug, I was certain Derf would be wearing that expression.

"I think I have just the thing," Derf was likely grinning madly, as was I.

"Ashbringer!" I bellowed. As the first drops of rain began to fall, the blade began to glow. Brighter and brighter, reaching the point where it could have been a second sun. Blade elongated. Hilt lengthened. The bright glow retreated up the sword, forming into a crystal of pure light, engraved into an upheld palm. A hand. The Silver Hand. What remained traveled up to me. Armor. Steel. What should have been cold hard plates was in truth, warm.

The undead stepped back, but one seemed to recover himself. He charged, overconfident, as I expected the dead were. After all, I had already failed to kill their leader. What was a flashy light show?

Everything. One swing of the massive holy blade, and his sword-wand shattered, his body turning to ash before his head could have hitten the grass below. The three remaining paused. It had happened so fast.

"By Light be purged, to find peace in death," I don't know where the phrase had come from, but it felt right. It wasn't a threat, spoken without malice, but I could see fear. This was not something they had planned on. A blade capable of destroying the unliving in a single blow? But alas, such was the strength of the Ashbringer.

The remaining three lashed out in panic, weak spells with poor aim shooting by. The dead could feel fear, it seems. Water mage, rend in twain, fire, his flames turned against him as holy magic bound itself into the blaze, earth, a hammer of light through the chest. Fast, easy, simple. There was only one left to return to the grave. Wales. Something told me he was going to make me fight for this.

Somehow, he had already managed to recover, and was already pushing Tabitha and Kirche on the defensive. They were good, without a doubt, but he was better. A Hand of Protection for Tabitha, and Divine Shell for me was I blocked a powerful windstorm.

"I have this," my voice was calm. I was surprised I hadn't fallen apart into a raging mess right now. But the Light seemed to keep my mind clear. "Wales, please stand down and let me grant you peace in death. You are being used as a puppet to kidnapper and likely kill the person you care about the most. Do you really want to live with yourself if you do that?" It was a plea, a desperate one, trying to get an advantage. Wales, midcast, paused. There was an advantage, and I took it.

"Don't come!" the Princess! Her voice snapped Wales back to his senses as I lept back, avoiding the massive wall of jagged ice that erupted from the ground. "I will never let you lay a finger on Wales!" Love was a powerful thing. Hentrentia already lost him once. Losing him again was out of the question.

"Stop obstructing me!" she was crying. "Louise! Please give up!" Water began to surge as Wales supported her hand. Maybe I should have held back on those damage immunity spells. Water over water over water. Wind over wind over wind. Dual casting two triangle level spells into a brand new one. In short, it was a waterspout. Living in Kansas gave me a new idea's about how dangerous winds could be, but this?

I meet the spell head on, Ashbringer glowing with light. But even with the runes increasing my strength, and the Light's power, I was being forced back. What the hell was this? Suddenly a thought entered my mind, likely placed there by Derf.

"Louise, the book!" I shouted, hoping my voice could be heard over the howling wind. She paused, if only for a second, before grabbing and pulling it open. I couldn't hear a word she said, until the chanting started. At that moment, a single thought went through me. Buy time. I focused everything I had into Ashbringer. Holy power struggling against natural disaster. The rain was pouring, adding even more fuel to the spell.

Ashbringer glew as the chanting reached a fever pitch. Whatever healing and defensive magic I had was being taxed to it's limit.

Then there was a flash. Spell gone. Ice wall. Gone. Wales? Tumbling over. I let out a gasp of air, before sheathing Ashbringer. There was simply no longer any need for it's presence anymore. The princess was crying full force now, sobbing over Wales's body.

Suddenly his body moved. I was more than ready to draw Ashbringer again. But the spell? Louise hit it with anti-magic. How, exactly could he be moving? Oh, right, the same way I got him to stop casting. Love. Well, it looks like earth did have a form of magic after all. Shame I never had much luck in that regard.

"Wales," the princess's voice was a flutter, barely audible. I couldn't even imagine what she was going through. Though I did have an hand in some of it.

"Hentritia, stop crying!" the prince's voice was also faint. He was weak, dying again for the second time. This is why I wanted to use the Ashbringer. He was of noble heart. He didn't deserve what had happened to him. To them. "Before I leave, I would like you to forgive me, and make an oath, Henrietta."

"An oath? What oath shall I make?" her voice was panicked. An oath. Apparently I was missing something about this place.

"Forget about me," Henrietta recoiled, almost by instinct. But I think I understood what he wanted. He wanted her to move on. To go on living, and loving. "Make an oath to forget about me, and fall in love with another."

"I wish to hear those words, besides the Lake of Lagdorian, with the Water Spirit as witness," he continued. Well, it looks like I'll have to make a call in the near future.

"I can't make an oath like that," Henrietta protested. But it was feeble. She didn't want to do it, but at the same time, she did, if only for the sake of her lover. But oath's require being followed, and she didn't want to do that.

"Please do it, Henrietta," he was begging, pleading now. If I was just a bit faster, I could have spared both of them this heart wrenching goodbye. I think though, that this was far better closure for the two of them. They didn't deserve it, but they needed it. For the prince, to know that she could move on. For the princess, for fire. For revenge against those who did this to her lover. For steel to face the odds.

"No! No way!" she was losing what little composure she had left. "Please stop lying! I won't make that oath!"

"I'm running out of time," he should have already run out. He would have been resting peacefully for more than a month.

"In that case, make an oath! An oath that you will love me! Love me for eternity!" she was desperate, very desperate. This was beyond me. If I could fix this I would. If I could give her a happy ending, I would do it. But I couldn't. "I'll make the oath not to Wales of the past, but to Wales of the present!" No, this was beyond desperate.

"I would if I could, but someone who is dead can't make an oath for eternity, Henrietta," the prince looked up. Nobody could make that oath type of oath. Nobody lives forever. Even legends die, eventually. To be ground into dust by the wheel of time and memory.

"Forgive me, Henrietta, three years ago, I couldn't speak these words, due to my inevitable fate," there was no such thing as inevitable. Somewhere, in some universe, you two were happy, and alive. Shame it couldn't be this one. A look of agony suddenly came over the prince's face. Time was running out. If she was to do this, she needed to do it quickly.

"I'm glad to have met you, Henrietta," Wales was gasping now. "I love you, forever." His body went limp. Louise closed her eyes, leaning into me for comfort. I put my arm around her, to keep her warm.

And the Princess mourned.

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First post of the new year!

Not much else to say beside this chapter being the second most depressing thing I've ever committed to writing.

I hope you all enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.


	22. Unexpected Arrivaul

It's review answering time!

Quinn: Yeah, Henrietta is going through the upmost hell right now. And I can't spoil anything about what I'm planning to do.

Towtuker: Oh I understand… Are you shipping, good sir?

Boyzilla: Ashbringer is amazing. Out of all the weapons, this was one I was most looking forward to. It just took 21 chapters.

Let's get on with the show!

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The academy was complete chaos. Enemy attack? No. Surprise undead plague? Also no. Practically all of the male student population enlisting in the war effort and having to leave? If that was all it took to cause complete and total chaos, I'd hate to see what would happen during an actual attack.

"You know, with every guy leaving, Leo is going to be the only boy left at the academy," I shuttered. The poor guy. In almost any other person, this would be a dream come true. Unfortunately, Leo never was one to really care about romance, period.

"Where is Leo, anyway?" Louise seemed to pause, looking around. Not really a hard question to answer. He was either working, or he was sulking.

"If I had to guess he's still a bit mad about not getting to see Ashbringer," I stated, slightly amused. Leo may not have been a massive lore nerd, like I was, but Ashbringer was just one of those weapons that anyone remotely familiar with Warcraft knew about. And despite his fear of the unliving, the sword would helped change his mind.

"So that sword is really that much of a big deal?" she looked up at me. Big deal probably wasn't sufficient enough to describe Ashbringer's significance. Breaker of Frostmorne. Scourgebane. Against the forces of darkness, this was the most hated blade. Yes, it could be corrupted, and had been, but it always returned to the Light.

It was an ace the hole to be played only when the enemy best suited it's talents. And since it had already been played, I didn't need to worry anymore about showing it. It's mere presence in my arsenal would likely ward off further undead sanangines in the future. That was the hope, anyway. Then again, the enemy could be insane. At this point, I wouldn't put it past her.

"What's that?" someone asked. I paused, following everyone's upward gaze. At first glance, it looked like a shooting star, only that it was daytime, and it was heading right for us. No, scratch that, it wasn't a shooting star. It was merely a small dragon. Even at a distance, it was clearly some type of albino, white scales gleaming in the sunlight. It had something over most of it's face, divided down the middle, with blue on the left, and red on the right. Even more notable was its rider, blonde hair, with primarily white clothing, with a long blue cloak thrown over his shoulders.

Something told me that we weren't going to get along. At all. Most of the boys didn't look that happy about the newcomer, seeing as he stole all the attention they were getting. Though he seemed to be used to it, paying his newfound admirers no mind. He stopped directly in front of Louise and I.

"I'm Julio Chesare," he smiled, as I noticed something odd. His eyes were two different colors. One was something I'd almost call blue, while the other was what I would call pink. Strange, but not unheard of, unlike natural pink and purple hair. "A transfer student from Romania. Nice to meet you."

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Crack! Crack! Wood crashed against wood with brutal strength. The light wooden blade twisted in my hand into a reverse slash, before releasing the grip. My right hand came forward, catching the blade and allowing my momentum to carry through. The blow reverated up my blade and into my arm.

Crunch! My face soured, tossing the ruined sword into the ever growing pile. Wooden blades were good for practice, but if you put too much force behind a strike, they could break. While the runes never did impart real lasting knowledge, swinging around giant swords did wonders for my strength. To many wonders, from the looks of things. So far, that was four perfectly good swords ruined. Maybe it was time to stop. Didn't want to go through all the practice swords at once. After all, it seemed like Agnus had something planned with them anyway. And right now, she didn't seem in the happiest of moods. Then again, from my understanding, she never was. She had some baggage. Some serious baggage. It didn't help any that her job was so serious. She hardly smiled. Ever. Actually, never.

Not only that, she seemed to have a distaste of mages. Fire ones, especially, the a bits and pieces of chatter I heard were remotely true. If it was any of my business, I would bet that those things were related. Quite a bit of money, at that. But it wasn't. For the time, anyway. Here was to hoping it didn't bite us in the ass at a later date. The last thing we needed was another revenge quest. Hentrentia, once she had finally recovered from the shock of it all, was borderline furious that Reconquista not only turned her former lover into a zombie in an attempt to kidnap her. Even more so, she was ashamed that it almost worked. The first, and hopefully only time I'd ever see her mad. Throw in the Scepter of Azshara alongside a dual-triangle spell crap, and we would have tsunami on our hands.

She was that scary. Of course, I was also getting bored of waiting for Louise to bring up her family, so I did a bit of digging on my own. The results were, well, to be frank, horrifying. Both her parents appeared to be square class mages, with her mother, according to rumor, being none other than the war hero, Karin of the Heavy Wind. Her eldest sister was a triangle class mage, making her very strong in her own right. There was nothing I could find on Louise's other older sister, beyond the fact she was also a triangle. Then there was Louise, a void mage. Everyone in that family was strong, especially if the Karin rumor was true. Then again, that also would depend on several different factors.

Mostly whether or not the rumors were over exaggerations, or under exaggerations. Either way, it wouldn't affect a fight that much, but still, even if I lost, it would still be interesting. And there was no doubt in my mind I would lose. It was just a matter of how fast. I had ways that might be able to annoy her, maybe even give her pause, but winning that type of fight?

That was simply beyond me, or my abilities. Even my artifacts wouldn't be enough to turn the tide. We are talking about one of the strangest mages in history, without much doubt. Possibly stronger than Louise, even. No, it was very likely she was stronger. Louise was young, still discovering her magic, and her limits. Karin didn't suffer from that. Even if she was past her prime, even if she was retired, I wouldn't be surprised if she could level a small town with little effort.

The door to the courtyard, with students pouring out, Agnes and her musketeers not far behind. I pitied the poor soul that she had interrupted. The fact she had taken them out of class was apparent, if the looks on their faces were a clear indication. They were less than pleased, even less so when each one was given a practice spear, which consisted of wooden pole with a clump of cotton on the top.

I decided to sit down for a bit, if only to finish catching my breath.

"I was wondering were you were," Leo grinned, joining me on the ground, before handing me a few light weight wooden daggers.

"Leo, why did you make these?" I frowned, looking at the four small blades. I had a few ideas, but I didn't really like any of them.

"I may be keeping myself in a room, but I'm not an idiot. This is training for war, Isabella," he frowned, looking me in the eye. That was true. Leo wasn't an idiot, or a fool. A little weird, sure.

"Besides, if this is training, there will be sparring. And what type of friend would I be if I didn't make sure you were going in with your full bag of tricks?" Leo's smirk was wide as could be. Yes, my person motto of don't fight fair, and make sure you have plenty of spare knives certainly would apply here. Even if the knives were made of wood. I quickly worked away at replacing the real steel ones, if only for the time. Louise even purchased a few small scabbards for them, even though I really didn't need them. I decided the least I could do was put them to use.

I watched as what appeared to be a small fight break out between Agnes and one of the girls. Monmon, I think that was her name, was not happy about what was happening, but was silenced fairly quickly. I had expected something like that. Her position as leader wasn't one that was obtained without reason. Being a normal person against mages, she would have to be not only fast on her feet, but smart. It was fact that all mages needed a wand, alongside time, to work their magic. Without a wand, there was nothing a mage could do, unless they had a spare. And something told me that line of thinking was not exactly common. I mean, it was common sense, and common knowledge, but as far as they were concerned, nobody could touch them.

I had thankfully broken Louise out of that mindset. One must never, ever, underestimate their opponent. Didn't matter who, or what they were. Tabitha also didn't seem to mind. Then again, the girl had the same emotional range of a brick wall, as far as I was able to read. It was creepy, on all levels. It was like she was a doll or something. No person should ever look like that.

"Still jealous about missing the Ashbringer?" I teased with a grin. Leo's face soured immediately. To him, Ashbringer was a big deal. A blade without peer. The fact he switched from Rogue to Paladin at the chance to use it spoke for itself. Still, he had no right to complain. He kept that gear, hammer, thing, hidden from me for how long again?

"I won't be if you swear you use it again," he snapped. Yeah, that was still a poor spot with him. I didn't blame him. Being able to hold Ashbringer, let alone being able to use it, was something I wanted to experience again. But in the end, I still had several other weapons I needed to try out, so it may have to wait a bit.

"Well, since I don't have to worry about keeping it in reserve anymore, I'll see what I can do," my grin was wild. It was true, now that the cat was out of the bag, I didn't need to worry about using it.

"Wait, one of the most iconic swords in WoW, and you were sitting on it?" Leo seemed a bit shocked.

"This is a fantasy universe, duh. There will be necromancers, and where there are necromancers, there will be undead. How did Ashbringer get it's name again?" The question was only partially rhetorical. Merely asked because it drove the point of my logic home.

"The blade was given it's name due to it's ability to turn undead into ash with a single sword swing," he said, as if reciting the fact from memory. And he probably was. He eat Ashbringer facts like I devoured a good book. It have him something besides his computer and his machines to work with. Though, I had to make a new log-in user for my laptop, because I was not trusting him, or anyone else, with my personal stuff.

But seeing as he spent most of his time working with Professor Colbert, it was a safety precaution made in slight paranoia. Still wasn't changing my stance on the matter. Either way, that was more than enough break time. I went to over to the rack of poles, grabbing one swiftly. I paused, getting a feel for the training weapon's weight. Fairly balanced, light. It certainly was good, and my type of weapon. How long has it been since I've actually had to do this myself? Long enough, I suppose. The runes made it so I didn't have to. Instant knowledge, enhanced physical ability.

I was about to go over to Louise, if for no other reason than to keep her away from Julio. He was sent here for a clear reason. The Holy Church, ones who worshiped Brimir, the last known user of void magic. Louise was a void mage. What did that say about the Church, and the one they revered? But how would they know? Louise's magic was one of Tristain's best kept secrets. It either meant there was a leak in information, or they already knew ahead of time. To be frank, I had no idea which one was more terrifying.

Of course, that plan was immediately ruined by one of Agnes's musketeers. Once again, another person with an abnormal hair color. Her hair was a few shades darker than Tabitha's, making it a dark blue. I was never going to get used to the hair colors. I mean, how did this type of pigment come into existence? Furthermore, as far as my memory went, having abnormal hair color was at least some type of sign of noble blood. I mean, come on. Tabitha? Louise? Hentirtia? All of them were mages with abnormal hair color. Meanwhile, Agnes was a blonde, and Siesta had black hair. Which meant there was another person I might need to keep an eye on.

"Let me see how good you are," she said, tossing a wooden blade my way. I knocked it of the air mid arc with the wooden training spear in my hand, before taking a loose stance.

"I think I'll be fighting with this," I stared forward, waiting for her to make the first move. She seemed to pause, before bringing down the wooden sword in a two handed strike. I brought the spear high, the blow landing between my grip on the haft.

"If this was a real sword, you would be without a weapon," the girl hissed in annoyance.

"Good thing you aren't using a real sword," I smirked, before, giving up the test of strength, stepping to the side. The sudden loss of resistance knocked her off balance, though she start recovering swiftly enough. Until I smacked the weapon into the inside of her knee, before pushing upwards, throwing the leg up and her onto her back. I brought the weapon down, were the spear point should be, leaving it right above her throat.

"My win, I do believe," I offered her a hand up, after I removed the training spear from her throat. She took it reluctantly.

"Again," was her simple response. I shrugged, taking up another fighting stance. Once again, she went on the attack. The first blow was a high one, aimed toward my head. I blocked, wood crashing against wood. The second was low, aimed towards my knees. It was also blocked. I shifted my feet, turning the block into a strike to side of the skull. If I had let it land at full force, it would have likely caused a concussion. But I controlled the strike, little tapping it on the side of her skull.

"I win, again," I said. She was good, no doubt about it. But I held a single advantage over her. And that advantage was the deciding factor at the moment. Odds were, she had never seen anyone fight quite like I did. As such, countering my bag of tricks would be a trial and error process. Plus, I was far more used to wooden weapons than steel, something that would normally be a weakness that my runes covered.

"Again," she ground out. Good, she was determined. Even if this wasn't turning out like she thought it would. The next blow came in fast, aimed towards my ribs. I blocked, slightly surprised by the wild force behind it. She was getting mad. Or at least some type of calm fury. The next blow was an overhead strike. The loud crack told me everything I needed to know. I darted back, breaking the staff over my knee. It gave her pause, if only for a moment. That moment was all I needed. By the time she noticed, it was too late. The broken pole in my left hand blocked the strike, while the other found it's way near her throat.

This time, I didn't make a boast. At the moment, I doubted it would be liked. And I really didn't want to turn this into a best out of seven. Or nine. Or however far this would go. Best of five was plenty, and I had my sights on another opponent. Julio was that opponent. I didn't trust him. Not one bit. Everything about him rubbed me the wrong way.

"Why did you do that?" it was a simple question.

"In a real fight, the only thing that matters is victory. That means just about anything is fair game. If snapping your weapon in half is the only way to stay alive, then so be it," I shrugged. Don't get me wrong, honor did have it's place. But that place wasn't in war, and certainly not on the battlefield. I swore, she seemed to grin at that.

"I think, you are much better off than I thought you were," yep, she was definitely grinning. I offered her a hand, one that this time, she gladly took.

"If I may?" the voice belonged to Julio, who was holding out an unbroken spear in his hand. Oh. Oh! And here I was, worried about how exactly I was going to get to go a round or two with him.

My answer was simple, as I stepped into a loose guard. Whoever hadn't been watching Julio, or my own fight, had pretty much taken notice. His response was swift, a powerful overhead swing. I didn't block the blow, redirecting it to the side. I attempted a reverse hand strike with the improvised staff, only for Julio to recover, easily blocking the light blow.

Crack! A powerful blow from the right side. Crack! Another from the left. Even if I didn't like Julio, he was good. I batted aside a thrust, looking for any flaws in his guard. Each strike he made was swiftly brought back to defend himself from counter attack. His attacks were ether powerful two-handed blows, or swift jabs.

I frowned. It was a gambit, but, it's not like i had anything to lose. The next strike was an overhand blow. This time, I meet it head on. Only to let the weapon drop from my grasp.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you," good, so he was paying attention. I kept my gaze ahead of me, not bothering to look down. His guard dropped, if only slightly. That was all I needed. I brought my foot up, bringing the weapon that had been resting on it into the air, before kicking. The flat of the weapon smacked against Julio's forehead, knocking him off balance. I pressed my advantage, ramming the side of my body into his stomach. The blow knocked him down, sending the wooden blade into the air. I caught it, pointing it downward.

"Good round," I said bluntly. He seemed to nod in agreement.

"That was very interesting," he said, still rubbing his head. "May I ask were you learned such techniques?" I was tempted to answer. Extremely so if it wasn't for the sudden beam of light that suddenly slammed into the ground over in the next courtyard. I was already on the move. Enemy attack? Act of God? Titans?

I was the first to break into the area, and by that point, the light had already died down, leaving a prone figure. Oh, don't tell me that spell already broke! Given how much time Louise and I spent on that, I was not in the mood for a take two.

I paused, looking at the body. No. That was not possible.

"Jacob?"

"Isabella?"

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This took a lot longer than it should have. For Honor, and ten page paper over the Nazca lines, and massive project over Warcraft myth.

I hope you all enjoy, and sorry for the late update.


	23. Other Self

It's review answering time!

Boyzilla: Jacob is Isabella's younger brother. I never did give him his name during the Earth segment. My mistake.

Towtwuker: I have plans within plans of how things are going to work out. There may be yuri, or there may not be yuri.

Now to get on with the show!

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Agnes and I shared a look. This was a bad situation. We couldn't exactly trust Julio on anything about my origin, and having someone who I knew appearing seemingly from the light beam wasn't something I think we could spin, believably, at least. And with his presence, Louise and I wouldn't have the time to cast the necessary spell work to send him back.

Why couldn't my life ever be simple? The last thing I needed was unannounced family members showing up. But for now, how do I play this? Playing keep away from Julio wasn't going to be easy, and keeping him clear of all the boy starved girls would be even harder.

"Sister," Jacob seemed ill. Last I heard the Nightmares had stopped. So why, exactly, was his body glowing red? "Help me."

It was a blink and you miss it occurence. Hell, it was an understatement. Blinking wouldn't be required. A shift to the left, a twitch of the staff in my hand was the only thing that deflected a killing blow. The blast of wind pressure knocked me off my feet ending me sprawling.

The wall behind me practically exploded, a massive blade impaled in the stone structure. I considered the Warblades absurdly massive, and this single blade was easily twice the size. It was a cruel weapon, black and red, serrated cutting edge, with the hilt curving back into a brutal hook. My brother had his hand wrapped around the hilt, body almost limp, like a puppet. The aura had picked up to a fever pitch.

"Get the students back, now!" Anges ordered, already drawing her sword. I had doubts about it doing us any good, though. It took a single blow to put a decent size hole in the wall, and the only thing I've seen do that was Louise's void magic. This was bad. I didn't have a weapon ether. I left my knives with Leo, and I had left Derf elsewhere.

"Isabella, catch!" speaking of Leo, apparently the blast hadn't gone unnoticed. Colbert was already helping the musketeer's removing the students from the grounds, though Louise seemed to be intentionally lagging behind though, likely to try and get involved.

I caught the two blades out of the air, runes flaring up. I was going to need every ounce of power I could get for this. Leo's gear hammer sprung up in his grasp, with Julio drawing his own sword.

Jacob, or, the thing that was using his body, immediately honed in on Leo, whether it was because the hammer or because it sence his own inexperience I couldn't tell. But the effect was immediate, another high speed strike, one that Leo was hardly able to block, the whirling gears meeting the sword with a sloppy strike.

"Do you have any idea what's going on?" Agnes snapped. I shook my head. This was beyond me. This didn't make any since. Was magic playing some role in this? Louise certainly seemed to think so, her despell, flying directly at Jacob. The aura surrounding him flickered, before returning at full force, this time turning on Louise.

"Louise, move!" I shouted, darting forward, knifes in my hands shifting into a pair of daggers, known as Kingsbane. I used both the block the oversized blade, the legendary daggers meeting the unnatural looking blade. They both clashed in a shower of sparks, and even with the enhancements the runes gave me, keeping the sword in check was a struggle.

"Jacob, snap out of it!" I bellowed. If he heard me, he didn't give any response. That was to be expected. I raised my foot, pushing it outwards. A simple push kick was all it was, crashing into the underside of his ribs. Bone snapped under the blow, causing him to scid back. Note to self, whatever was controlling him clearly wasn't magic, and it certainly wasn't making him any more durable. But it was somehow increasing his speed and strength? Once again, I heard the snapping of bones. Ribs to be exact.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," I mutter to myself. A healing factor! This was already enough of a pain in the ass in the first place. Throwing something like a Wolverine esc healing factor was going to make this any easier.

"What exactly is going on?" Agnes snapped. She was clearly as annoyed as I was about this whole mess.

"Enhanced speed, enhanced strength, ability to rapidly regenerate from wounds," Leo sounded off, earning him two glares. Well, three glares, seeing as Jacob went back to focusing his attention to Leo. What was up with that? There was me with Kingsbane, Anges with her sword and flintlock, and Julio with his own blade. All of us trained, experienced, and all deadly, but he focuses on Leo, the one guy who doesn't have any of that? Could have something to do with his newfound ability to summon that hammer? He wouldn't even go after Louise unless attacked first, and she was likely the most dangrous one of us all.

I lept into action, after another sloppy block. Well if he could heal, I wasn't going to feel too horrible about stabbing him. Ok, I was still going to feel bad. Whatever possessing him aside, he was still my brother. And I was about to stab him with daggers.

"Sorry," the two daggers plunged into flesh, depositing their poisonous payload. I leapt over a reverse sweep, I landed lightly on the ground as Agnes fired. The bullet found it's mark, puncturing my brothers arm. I hope it was her mark, anyway. Already the bullet wound was stitching itself shut. The twin marks from the dagger were healing a much slower rate, sizzling as it forced the poison out. But it was healing. It should be impossible. Kingsbane poison was one of Azeroth's most dangerous. One of it's most deadly. To see it being shrugged off so easily was almost insulting.

"Explosion!" the spell impacted my brother square in the chest, as he looked between me and Agnes, likely decide to attack next. Even with a spell like that, he was rapidly recovering. Yeah, this wasn't working. We needed to try something else. Thankfully, the blast had stunned him for a few seconds.

I focused on the weapons, the Kingsbane becoming pair of normal steel daggers. Then they began to change, lengthening into another pair of knives. Teeth to more accurate. Fangs. I hadn't held these weapons for quite some time. The Fangs of Ashamane. If beating it out of him wasn't working, then I suppose was going to have to make it safe enough for me to take a closer look at things.

"Entangle!" I may have not been fully tapping into the power of a druid, but that didn't mean spells were off limits. Of course, this was a fairly simple spell. It didn't even do damage. It was meant to ensnare. A job it performed most admirably as roots erupted from the dirt, wrapping around him like a cocoon, immobilizing him and denying him leverage. Now he wasn't going anywhere, and the massive blade he swung around was now useless.

"And you didn't use that in the first place?" Louise asked, seemingly annoyed. Agnes seemed to share the sentiment, if the look on her face was anything to go by.

"Honestly, because I didn't think that would work as well as it is," I said. My brother, or the thing that controlled his body, had stopped struggling, staring ahead blankly. I frowned. Besides that, the roots weren't a permanent solution.

It wasn't magic. It likely wasn't just some version of insanity. So what was it? I didn't want to use the Emerald Dream to solve this problem. Julio was still present, and I didn't want to tip my hand to much. But at this point, I was going to have do so. This was far more important, and the Emerald Dream itself was a tiny thing for me, seeing as how little I use it.

"I'm going to try something," I said, sitting down cross legged. I focused on detacching my body from the world, forcing myself into a sleep.

"Isabella, what are you doing?" even in my state of drowsiness, I could hear Leo's concern, even as my state of consciousness was lost to me.

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When my eyes next opened, one thing was certain. This was certainly not the Emerald Dream. All around me were dark towers, rising from the blackened earth. There was no sun, the world nothing more than a shroud of gloom. This was unexpected of me. Chains hung between the pillars, rattling despite the lack of breeze. In the shadows, I've could have sworn I say eyes. Small doll like creatures, if I was seeing it right.

Then I heard something. The sound of metal against metal. Steel and steel. I activated the fangs, body shifting the form of a large, dark purple panther. The shadows began shift around me, hiding myself from view. Now hidden from sight, I advanced to the noise.

The dolls became more and more frequent as I advanced through the strange terrian. The closer to the sounds of battle it became, the lighter it became. Brighter. I would have gasped if I could at the sight.

A land of shadow meet a land of metal. Pillars of darkness rose to meet gears of steel. And were the two worlds meet, two beings clashed. The first thing I noticed the weapons, and that's what allowed me to identify them. The massive sword, the geared hammer. Jacob, and Leo. But this, this shouldn't be possible. What was going on here? It made zero sense. I mean, it certainly wasn't a coincidence. Both of them here? While existing outside of this place? Did it have something to do with what Leo accomplished? If so, that raised many questions about what Leo actually did.

The two weapons ground together, creating a shower of sparks. I wanted to step in, to interfere, but who would I help? And even if I did step in, what would happen to them? If I hurt them here, would they be hurt for real? If I killed one, would the same happen in reality? Jacob's behavior showed that there was a connection, but I had no knowledge of its nature. Nor did I have any way to gain that knowledge.

It clearly had something to do with dreams, seeing as I accessed this place by trying to visit the Emerald Dream. But this didn't seem like a dream. Honestly, it felt more like surreal nightmare. Wait, nightmare? Didn't that news report say something about a nightmare? Didn't mom say the exact same thing?

Ok, so this was connected to dreams, was somehow overlayed over the Emerald Dream itself, and it was causing different symptoms than it did on earth. It was possible that the Emerald Dream's presence may be the cause. Seeing as the Emerald Dream did have influence over the physical world, that was possible. It may just be Leo was more resistance to the effects. If I could separate the two, I might be able to mitigate the worst of the effects. But how exactly was I going to accomplish that? I had nothing that could accomplish such a task. I didn't even know how to accomplish such a thing. And we were on a time frame. I had no idea what needed to be done, and there was no way to know. Leo might have a few ideas but I couldn't contact him.

I was at a lose. I couldn't fix the problem, atleast, not easily, and not without outside aid. Of course, I didn't exactly count on that outside aid coming anyway. Then again, I shouldn't have been surprised. It appeared that Leo had something to do with this anyway, so it was natural that he would have a way to fix it. That would explain what he was working on, and why he was avoiding me. I mean, I knew he could had done strange things, some of which borderlined on humorlously impossible, but this?

The strange sky began to crackle with lightning, rolling across the cloudless air. Even then the two figures didn't stop their fighting. Something told me it would take one of them dying to accomplish that. Slowly everything began to fracture, falling apart like a broken window. I think it was time to take my leave of this place. I focused on my real body, letting by concuiness flow out of the dream.

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My eyes inched open slowly. The first thing I saw was Louise, looking over me, concern written over her face. I slowly pushed myself up, giving Leo an annoyed glance, the device in his hand still spinning. We were going to talk about this later, and he knew it. I was pretty mad about it. Yeah, Leo likely did it with the best intentions, but that's how the road to hell was paved. I would have glared at Julio, but honestly, I had more important things to do. Taking care of my baby brother was on the top of that list.

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This update was later than I expect, and I shouldn't have an excuse, due to it's short length (which was longer than I originally planned). Jacob gets his first real proper introduction, and we have basic idea of what Leo has actually done. Anyone that properly guesses what inspired it gets a cookie (the chapter title is a massive hint).

I hope you all enjoyed, and see you next time.


	24. Meeting the Family

Sorry I haven't been able to update in so long. A lot of the time I would normal spend writing has been taken up by two massive school projects, both of which are finally over. Once finals are out of the way, I should be able to start back up a normal update schedule.

Now, onto the reviews.

Boyzilla: That wasn't the Emerald Nightmare. It was something completely different. Sorry I didn't make it more clear.

The answer to last chapter's question is: Black Rock Shooter.

Now, on with the show!

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The only word to describe the academy at the moment was messy. No, more like a state of chaos, due to the prior day's events. One of the walls was in need of repairs, a massive crater that only could have been delivered by that of a large cannon. The courtyard was similarly littered with small pocket markets, ranging for those delivered by a small cannon to a firearm. Grass was ripped out by what appeared to be giant cuts in the earth, caused by who knew what contraption.

To put simply, the courtyard was in a complete state of disarray. Eleonore's eyes narrowed. Way did she have the suspicion that her sister had something to do with this?

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Sleep is love. One of the best things in existence, as far as I would ever be concerned. Especially if it was a dreamless one. You get to wake up nice and refreshed, and given the events of yesterday, that was exactly what I needed. No drama, no extra family members appearing out of nowhere.

The universe, it seems, had other plans. The door slammed open without warning, jolting me out of my half dazed state. I blinked, trying to restore my vision as quickly as possible. In the doorway, a woman stood, wearing a white blouse with a long purple skirt that went down to her ankles. Her eyes were the same as Louise's, a piercing pink, with her blonde hair also done in a similar manner.

Something told me the two of us were not going to get along. Our eyes meet, matching each other in a glaring contest.

"Louise!" she shouted, without any regard for anyone else in the building. "Little sister Louise!" It was the crack of dawn! Some people were trying to sleep! Louise let out a yawn, the noise causing her to awake. My glare intensified, not that she seemed to notice, or even care.

Louise's eyes opened sleepily, rubbing them, before noticing the sight in front of her. It took a moment for her brain to process the information in front of her.

"Big sister Eleonore!" she gasped loudly, eyes widening in shock. It seems like her arrival was unexpected, and likely unwanted.

"Now that you're up, pack up," Elenore said, her glare shifting to Louise. Wow. Louise had a sister that was less adjusted than her when it came social situations. That, or she was a bitch. Most likely the latter. I mean, come on, it was nearly the crack of dawn. Nobody sane would be up at this hour on their own free will.

"You're coming home," the statement caused me to pause. Something was up. I wouldn't have been surprised that Louise's parents knew about our little missions, seeing as her family was close to crown, if what I had heard was correct. If this was the reaction that meant they likely didn't approve. Then wouldn't they just go through the crown or something?

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Things had quickly gone down hill from there. As of the moment, I was currently being dragged around by the back of my shirt. Yeah, this somehow happened. It would be funny if it wasn't for the fact she was somehow pulling Louise along, on top of her momentum providing for my own movement. Louise likely didn't push one hundred, even ninety pounds, but I knew I was at least one-thirty. To make matters worse, she was somehow dragging Siesta behind her, who was probably a good one-twenty.

To be fair, I needed to stay close to Louise, especially right now. At the same time, I really needed to get my brother sent back, or at least, keep him away from prying eyes. Anges could be trusted, and Leo didn't seem to want to make a break for home, so those were two options. However, Anges was in charge in training, and Leo, well, was extremely unskilled, if yesterday's display was anything to go by.

Which was why I was tapping away madly on my phone. I didn't know if my brother had his. Last I had checked, he was still asleep, not that I blame him. Whatever happened to him, he needed to recover and heal. It didn't change the fact that his safety and Leo's hinged on how I threw this phone.

The purple case went up in an arc, sailing through the air like a missile. My aim was true, passing through a window, the faint 'Ow' bringing music to my ears. Looks like the mission was a success.

Hopefully Leo would find it in him to forgive me for beaning him at long range.

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"Ow!" Leo's head jolted back on impact, a purple blur smacking into his face. He rubbed his forehead, swearing under his breath. Where had that even come from? The device flopped onto the bed, screen lit up. Well, that probably had the answer somewhere.

'To Leo,

I have been kidnapped by Louise's sister. Do not send help, I'll be fine. However, I am assigning you a far more important task. Keep an eye on Jacob, and whatever you do, make sure he stays as far away from Julio as possible. Also, if he wakes up before I get back, both of you are going to spend time training with Agnes.

PS: Jacob, Agnes is not interested in guys. I checked.'

"Give me that," the voice was groggy and full of tiredness, as Leo found the phone snatched from his grasp. His eyes widened in surprise. Jacob was somehow awake. Not much granted, but far better than what they had been expecting.

Jacob looked at the screen for a few seconds, before letting out a sigh. "Do you know what it's like to have a sister that is better with girls than you are?"

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It really, really shouldn't be that hard to resist the urge to murder somebodies sister. Yet. here I was, quite desperately wanting to summon Thas'dorah and start shooting her in the face. Repeatedly. Seriously, how did she not know that checks were not supposed to stretch that way! I had no idea what was being said, but if I was, I would likely be in the middle of strangling Eleanor, Louise's protest be damned.

As much a death tempted me at the moment, it wasn't what I wanted to resort to. Yet. Wyvren venom would be a nice touch, honestly. That would put her in an unconscious state for a good hour or two. Nothing too harsh. Just enough to make sure Louise, and by extension, myself, from dealing with what was already likely going to be a stressful rest of the day. Another pinch drew my eye, as well as my ire. Nope, wyvern venom is too good for her. Time to talk to Eleanor. Repeatedly. With an elven bow, and enchanted arrows. I could make it look like a hunting accident to. I long needed to get out of the carriage, break hard left into the woods, find a dear, lead it into the line, then bam, I miss a shoot.

No that wouldn't work. Where would I get the deer? Illusion magic was a distinct possibility, but I had always been unwilling to attempt to wield two artifacts at once. As far I had been able to figure out, the weapon and the armor were formed and empowered by Louise's own magic. I could technically not summon the armor at all, but it would cause even more magic to enter my body, often times, more of it than I could safely take in for moderate periods of time. Wielding two artifacts at the same time would likely kill me, leaving Louise completely dry of any magic, and that was the best case scenario.

"What are you planning?" Siesta was in the same cart as I was, and could clearly tell I was contemplating something. A something that was likely unpleasant, with the face I was making. I'm pretty sure that somebody should be feeling effects of my glare, but so far, nothing.

"I'm planning on shooter her. Make it look like an accident," I stated, causing Siesta to gasp. Of course, the maid wouldn't be familiar with casually inflicting murder in standard conversation. No, most people weren't. Yeah, maybe my temper was getting out of hand, but really, none of the pinching was necessary. Not even remotely. I placed my hand on Derf, the sword morphing into a massive longbow. It was only now that I truly realized the flaw in my murder plot. Thas'dorah couldn't fit in the carriage. The elven bow simple had too much length, especially in such a small coach. I couldn't even stand up to use it properly. Wasn't there a way to change that? My eyes closed, and I focused. It shifted, changing shape into something new. Something, forgotten. Bow became crossbow. My eyes opened. I was almost surprised when that actually worked.

It worked before, though that was when I was in the middle of a bloodthirsty rage. Ok, maybe now wasn't so different after all. The thought made me pause, if only for another second and another pinch. I reached for my back, only to grasp at nothing. Right, weren't crossbow bolts normally kept around the belt? I reached there, pulling a short steel bolt out from the quiver. That was the correct term, yes?

"Isabella, I am not letting you kill Louise's sister," Siesta said sternly, crossing her arms. I almost had to laugh. From the way she was talking, it seemed like she had formulated a plan to stop me.

"Fine," I relented slightly, if one for my amusement. "I'll use wyvern venom instead. Should keep her asleep for the remainder of the trip." It would have been a joke, if it wasn't for the fact I was serious, about both the effects, and my intent. Siesta's eyes narrowed.

"I can't let you do that, either," she stated, attempting to stare me down in an intimidating fashion, and failing miserably. Honestly, she lacked the bulk for such a task, though she likely had more muscle than her maid uniform let on. It wouldn't surprise me if she was trying to take some kind of moral high ground here, too.

"I'm going to be honest with you, Siesta. What exactly are you going to be able to do?" the question was a challenge, one that she accepted with glee. There were many things I had expected from her. Never did I once did I think her defense mechanism would come in the form of weaponed boob smothering. Oxygen, my mortal nemesis. We meet again.

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If I had to admit anything, Louise certainly had a massive house. No it wasn't a house, hell, it was easily a mansion, and on of the largest I've ever laid eyes on, at that. Easily three floors, with a smaller fourth level that could serve as an attic. And that was just the part I could see. There were likely servants quarters, other buildings, gardens, alongside other things that I simply couldn't spot at the moment. It was nightfall at this point, the twin moons hanging in the sky.

Though I did have to admit, the amount of servants was a tad bit unnerving. The school was understandable, seeing has hundreds of students needed someone to clean up after them and feed them, but wasn't this a bit much? At least a dozen were lined up the hallway alone, and there were likely more elsewhere. Their synchronization was creepy though, on a personal level. Though who was at the end of the hallway might even be more so.

My first thought was that somehow, Louise had traveled backwards in time. Her hair was longer, and, well, she was certainly more developed, something Louise could have looked like when her growth spurt finally hit. Her eyes and hair were exactly the same. Well, not exactly her eyes, and her face. They were, honestly, softer. Kinder. Lighter. Something told me she was the sole reason that Louise's dreams had lasted as long as they had. I think I already approved of her. Unlike a certain other older sibling. I mean, Louise willing jumped into her arms, while with Eleanor she had practically recoiled. The difference was as clear as night and day. Louise cared for her, and this older sister cared about her right back.

I frowned has her older sister said something, causing Louise's mood to suddenly plummet. She never really had talked about her family before. Why she wouldn't talk about Eleanor was pretty obvious. This sister? Not so much. They seemed to get along great, really.

"Cattleya, where's mother?" Eleanor finally interrupted the reunion. So Cattleya was her name. It would be nice to get to know her better at a later date, but at the moment, it seemed like I was going to be meeting another family member.

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The dining room was massive, more than easily setting the four with space to spare. Every now and then, my eyes flickered over to Louise's mother. You know that feeling when you meet the mother of someone you are about to take on a date? The one the that says 'you do something to my child, I will hunt you down and kill you'? That was the impression I was getting from her. No, it was actually worse than that. And she hadn't even looked at me yet! I had my suspicions about Louise's mother being Karin of the Heavy Wind, but this? Being in the same room as her made me feel like she couldn't be anything but!

"Um, mother," Louise attempted to start. Everything about her read nervousness. She still had issues in that department, for all her boasting. It was a work in progress that was stubbornly resisting improvement.

"Mother! Tell Louise for me, she should stay home from now on," Eleanor suddenly spoke. I immediately glared at her, eyes narrowing, trying to keep my temper in check. I was not going to lash out against her. Not with Karin in the vicinity, anyway. "I bet she's an outcast at school, too." My eyebrow twitched dangerously. She wasn't just pushing my buttons, she was pushing Louise's as well.

Louise's fists slammed into the table, her timidness giving way to anger. "I'm not the same as I used to be!" she snapped. I could only see the back of her head, but Eleanor certainly looked a bit surprised. "The Princess… I'm helping out her royal Highness!" and there was the bombshell. Karen may have rep, but the Valliere family has always been close to the crown. It might just be the edge Louise needed.

"With what? What could you possibly do when you have zero talent?" Eleanor's statement brought back my twitching eyes, now with a matching twin. Even if I didn't have a link to Louise, I could tell almost immediately that she was about to do something very, very stupid. I forced down my anger, and focused on Derf, drawing magic from Louise, and pumping it into myself, and it. Derf began to change shape into Felo'melorn, even though I kept the hilt the exact same. I heard the sharp intake of breath of the two servants standing behind me, but I payed the action no heed. Doing this hurt, a lot. Almost like my body was on fire, but Felo'melorn was the best weapon to work with when it came to something like this. This required all my concentration. Louise needed to work fast! I heard the muttering of a short incantation, then Louise's satisfaction, before sending the borrowed energy back. The candles at the table, which had been previously unlit, where now alight in a soft, warm glow. Even better, was the complete and utter shock on Eleanor's face.

Mere moments later, my body froze. For the first time, Karin had looked my way. Did she somehow notice? No, someone like her likely did notice. Crap. She would know something is up. Please don't call it out, please don't call it out. Her gaze shifted away. Oh, thank goodness.

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I can only remain thankful that the rest of the night was uneventful, even if by some point Louise had found her way to the small room I had been given. It was certainly a nice gesture, though I think it was because she was having trouble sleeping. Not that'd she admit it to my face. I found it quite cute, honestly.

I was forced to leave Louise to deal with her family. This was something she had to do, and I didn't trust my temper to not interfere. With that out of the way, I was forced to wonder around. I would hang around Siesta, but the girl had made herself scarce since last night. My eyes caught sight of her at least once. Apparently a part of being a maid was keeping out of sight when needed. Blood ninjas.

Still, I felt bad about not doing anything to help, but I also didn't want to get in the way of those who knew more about what they were doing. Maybe there was a way to ease their workload without me pulling out a mop or a broom. I gripped Derf, the sword becoming a staff, Alu'neth. A magical artifact used by one of the Guardians of Tirisfal. In terms of raw magical power, it was one of the strongest in my arsenal.

The enchanting wasn't easy work, even with the knowledge and steps imprinted into my brain. I was placing plenty of fail safes on this things. One of the last events anyone would want happening is a repeat of fantasia. That would be less than ideal, self empowered mops trying to kill us all. Not the best way to make a first impression. Heck, had I even made an impression yet? On anyone? Seriously, I had no idea at this point. And even if I did make one, did might not exactly be a good thing. Eleanor was likely indifferent at this point, and frankly, I could care less about her opinion of me. Karin and Cattleya on the other hand, I would at least like to stay on their good side. Cattleya was mostly due to the fact Louise simply adored her. Karen? Well, honestly, Karin scared me. In terms of magical power, she was below Louise, if only by just a hair. But in terms of experience, she was miles ahead.

"So, is this the reason my daughter was able to perform a spell last night?" the violet energy surrounding the broom shattered like glass. Well, there are a lot of things I could say at the moment. Add ninja to the list of things that Karen was. I hid my surprise well enough for the moment.

"Not exactly. She put in the effort after I borrowed the excess willpower," I stated, turning around. I kept the weapon out, even as the spinning at the tip died down. I wasn't willing to face Karen at the moment without it. Probably wouldn't make much of a difference. Maybe I could get off an ice block before being torn to pieces.

"I see. I then assume my daughter's statement about you being her familiar is in fact correct?" Karin really wasn't asking a question. It was a confirmation. I nodded simply. How fast could I use blink, again? Likely not fast enough. "And the adventures that hunting down criminals, along with the events that lead to the death of her traitorous ex-fiance?" I almost flinched. In the first time since I had arrived, this was the first time I had seen an emotion besides indifference.

She was angry. It was horrifying, like a wall cloud, looming overhead, with those beneath having no idea whether or not it would spawn a tornado. I'd like the indifference back, please. The only thing keeping me from bolting out of the room right then and there was that it didn't feel like it was directed at me. More at herself. I knew there was likely some type of connection to Wardes and Louise's parents, even if I didn't know it's nature. And as much as I hate the man's guts, he was an impressive fighter and a powerful mage. Karin of the Heavy Wind was the leader of the Manticore Knights at one point. It could be possible for Wardes to have served under her, and earned her trust.

It was a theory I'd much rather not have confirmed or denied at the moment. Least of all by Karin herself. It took merely a moment for the mask to slip back onto her face, much to my relief.

"And it seems you have protected her for this long, even if you spoke against such actions," a slight grin appeared on her face. "Why?"

"Because if Louise wants to do something, she's going to end up doing it whether I want her to or not. So even if I think something she's doing is reckless, it's better for me to be there to protect her, rather than let herself get hurt," my response was almost instant. Ok, now I knew she had a grin on her face. It was faint, but it was there. Apparently my answer was adequate.

"Good. One last test then, before I let my youngest march off to war. Tomorrow, by midday, I want you to meet me at the fields beyond the servants quarters. I wish to see if you are truly capable of defending my daughter."

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I am so, so sorry that it has been more than two months since the last update! I've been busy with my mythology group project, and my ten page minimum World Pre-History paper, alongside The Last Titan and my original story, Frost Bond.

I hope you enjoyed, and I don't think I need to tell anyone what's happening next time.


	25. Breakdown

It's review answering time!

Arthur: It's going to go just as well as expected.

Bircorn: Resurrection is one of those spell's I'm simply not going to touch on. It's potential power is beyond absurd, even if I took a nerf bat to it. Just using it once sets up so many plot points and holes that it simply isn't worth the effort. Plus, it takes the story completely off the rails the moment the church finds out about it, because let's face it, if someone can bring back the dead in their entirety, then everyone will want that person in their conner.

Now, on with the show!

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"Absolutely not! I forbid you from doing something this stupid!" Louise was furious. Understandable so, but it already becoming problematic.

"I have to agree with Louise. This is impossible, even for you, Isabella," oh, come on, even Siesta was against me on this one! Understandable seeing how this was the Karen of the Heavy Wind. However, I was giddy with excitement. I knew that this was likely going to end with me eating dirt. But I simply just didn't care. Victory in the traditional sense was all but impossible.

Part of the reason I had called for this little meeting, in fact. The goal, at least, I hoped it was the goal, was to impress, not to win. Which meant I was going to need a plan to last as long as possible. That was beginning to shape up into a challenge all by itself. The largest problem was I had absolutely no idea what Karin was even capable of. I'd heard the stories, of course, and even read a few books. But those were stories, not military reports. Overexaggerated, underexagerated, there was no real way of knowing.

Which was why I went to the Louise first. If anyone knew Karin's real strength and actually be honest with me in the current situation, it was her. What I hadn't counted on was her extreme reaction. She, like me, understood why this fight needed to happen. Louise wanted to be apart of the upcoming war, but she seemed to be just as terrified of her mother. What had happened to warrant such a response?

"You do realize I know that I really don't have a chance, right?" I stated, crossing my arms. This was a lost battle before it even began. I knew that. But it didn't mean I would be going home without swinging. I had already gotten this far, and there was no sense in stopping now.

"That doesn't matter! My mother is going to kill you!" Louise shouted. Ok, that was a bit extreme. And Louise was starting to freak out. What exactly had occurred for Louise to be so scared?

Lacking any other way to calm her down, I pulled her into a hug. It was about the only thing I could think of, but it worked. Louise's breathing slowly beginning to even out, as I let go.

"Better?" I ask. Louise nodded, keeping quiet. Ok, hopefully, she would stay calm for the rest of it. I was going to need her knowledge for this. Without it, I stood absolutely zero chance. Most of my plan had already began to take on a far more defensive stance than I normally would. But that wasn't going to do much good either.

Truthguard had rapidly become my best and only reliable form of defense. Primarily due to it's ability to project barriers. The other tank artifacts, while good in their own whys, lacked the whole, not get hit by blades of air that can bisect me with ease, thing. While the Scale of the Earthwarder would certainly also prove formidable as well, it didn't have the charm of avoiding any form of contact.

"Her signature spell is called the Heavy Wind. It's cyclone embune with razor wind spells, able to rip through armies in a single cast," that was interesting. And alarming. I grew up in Kansas, and as such was no stranger to the dangers of tornadoes. While one could argue that it was what the phenomenon picked up that made the disasters so dangerous. In reality, a tornado could destroy a house in less than a second, provided it had the strength. The shrapnel just made the damage even worse. This, however, sounded just as bad as well. Adding razors made of wind, hidden inside the twister, rendering them practically invisible. What truly was dangerous is the fact her signature spell was easily an EF 3 or stronger tornado given blades of death.

And that was just one spell. Karin would have many, many more. Building up that level of power had to take time, right? So she would have to use other spells in order to force an opponent to keep their distance. If I could get on top of her and stay there, I might be able to prevent her from making use of the spell. Doomhammer, maybe? Fists of the Heavens? Haven't had any use for that yet.

"Another of her stronger spells is wind lance," Louise spoke "It uses two cylinders of wind, one inside the other, to break open enemy formations." Oh? That was clever. Putting a spell inside another was not just powerful, but smart. Rather than simply two spells, if someone actually managed to block the first, they would have no time to deal with the second.

"She also knows an array of lightning spells, wind hammer, and blur," Louise continued, listing each off. Lightning was to be expected, and a bit problematic, but it was standard fare for a strong wind mage. Wind hammer was fairly basic, but still strong. Blur was one I was less familiar with. Did it boast speed? Was it physical, or did it have an effect on casting?

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"I'm impressed. Most would have not bothered to show," Karin's voice came from above. Ok, first of all, was she on a manticore? That made sense, seeing as she founded the manticore corps. It must have been her familiar. Appearing on mountback was certainly made her look more imposing, and had already messed with my strategy. Now she had complete control and surveillance of the battlefield. That was problematic even in the best of cases.

"Maybe I just want a chance to see exactly where I stand. Sparing with school children that assume their victory is assured don't exactly make for good opponents," I said. I already held Derf in a loose grip in my hand.

She had aerial superiority and I needed to change that somehow. An immediate offense was out. Karen would be able to see it coming and counter any attack with ease. Which left me on the defensive. The place that I really, really didn't want to be. If I left her unchecked and free to do as she pleased, I was going to end up beaten in short order.

"Very well. Begin," with that, Karen simply raised her wand. Truthguard formed in an instant, armor and all. In that instant, Karen's first wave of attack was already upon me. The screaming gale came straight for me like a train. A massive tower of wind had already begun to close the gap.

Truthguard ignited with energy, the bubble of holy power rapidly expanding outwards, surrounding me in a sphere of safety. The spell impacted the barrier, attempting to overcome it. I held my ground was the screaming wind attempted to overtake the barrier, as the razor's hidden within tried to cut it to pieces. Each impact caused the shield to quake.

Slowly but surely, the storm began to engulf the barrier, surrounding it on all sides. The eye of a hurricane was the safest place to be, right? I didn't know if the same was true for natural tornado's, but it certainly was working here. I waited for a few seconds, keeping the dome up against the storm.

Ok, it looks like we are good to…

'Partner, watch out!' Derf's voice forced its into my mind, and I brought the shield up by reflex. In less than an instant, the new incoming spell punched through the bubble around me and closed the distance. The shear force from the impact nearly sent me sprawling. Armored boots dug into the ground, in a vain attempt to stop me from being forced back. Holy magic ignited from the shield, wearing away at the spell. I braced my sword arm against the shield. Finally, the pressure on the shield relented, nearly causing me to tip over.

That was one wind lance. One! It punched a hole through my defenses like it was nothing! And.

"Derf, are you ok?" I looked down at the shield that Derf had become. This, this was impossible. Should be impossible. In every sense of the term. She, she had nearly broken Truthguard with a single spell. I had no words to describe what just happened. The shield was barely holding together. Cracks ran across it's face, emitting a harsh light. I couldn't take another hit with Truthguard in it's current state.

'I've certainly felt better, partner,' Derf responded. Ok, that's it. I really couldn't tank another attack like that. Eating that probably took everything but divine shield, and I wasn't trusting my defenses right now. I had to go on the attack.

Truthguard fell away, and my bubble with it. The howling gale was almost deafening now, without my protection. I was now exposed to the elements. With that exposure, came power. Power that I was able to tap into, with Doomhammer in my hand. As Karin's storm raged around me, thunder rumbled in the heavens, as a storm of my own began to take shape. A gale within a gale. A cyclone of my own roared to life, slamming into Karin's. Both windstorms battered against the other. One was going clockwise, and the other counter. They simply canceled the other out.

Next, the earth began to rumble and quake. From her position in the air, Karin hopefully wouldn't be able to feel it. With a mental push, four pillars of stone erupted from the earth, twisting through the air straight at Karin. It wasn't easy to guide all four through the air, an act only complicated when she began to open up with spells of her own. No wind lances, thankfully, but even wind hammer was able to take chunks out of the attack with little difficulty.

Altering their trajectory, the pillars shot past Karin, as I focused on the earth within. On my command, stone shot out from each of the pillars, slamming into the sides of the others, with the top and bottom filling themselves in. I had managed to confine Karin, if only for a moment. And that moment was all I needed. I let Doomhammer go, and without it's power connecting me to the elements, the pillars no longer had the durability they once had. Even at my present distance, I could already see that my cage was falling apart.

Wind began to pool in my hands, swirling with raging fury. I grasped the Fists of the Heavens, allowing their energy to flow through my body. I focused everything on speed. With a single push of my feet, I was flying. Each pillar that I had created was little more than a springboard, as I closed as much distance as possible.

The earthen prison I had created finally yielded to Karin's onslaught, breaking apart in a massive cloud of debris ranging from dust to small boulders. Just like I had planned. Each piece was a springboard, and her breaking free had granted me the ability to strike from every angle. My first strike came from above, coating my leg in a swirling wind as I came crashing towards my target. I was moving fast. Not so much so that I couldn't be tracked, but it certainly wouldn't be easy, and it would be extremely hard to react in time to dodge or even block.

Karin blocked the first strike with almost insulting ease. It had to be her blur spell. Nothing else could have allowed for her to continue to block my movements. Each blow I attempted to land was parried, knocked aside like it was nothing at all. Attacks from the underside, flanks, and above were countered. I attempted to make use of every single angle, relentless in my assault. But I was beginning to run out of room. Each time I launched off one of the rocks, it shattered into smaller parts, rendering further attacks from the same direction impossible.

Damn it! This wasn't working! I wasn't going to be able to keep this up for much longer! Gravity was already causing the debris field to lose altitude. I needed to get her on the ground if I was even going to stand a chance! So long as she was on that manticore, that was simply impossible. If I could ground it, Karin would be forced to land. But none of my hits were connecting! If I couldn't land a blow, how was I supposed to dismount her? Her experience gave her an impenetrable defense, which meant I wasn't going to be able to rely on something she'd might have seen before. But the Fists of the Heavens were built around speed and power, both traits granted from manipulation of air and wind. Two things, that by the end of the day, Karin was extremely well versed in.

Which meant I was going to have to get creative. A magical attack that granted me some semblance of elemental control. That meant I had switch back to Doomhammer. It was a change I made gleefully, as lightning shot through the sky and thunder screamed. The Fists of the Heavens faded, with both hammers appearing in my hands. I landed on one of the last remaining platforms above Karin, before calling forth a totem. As my last foothold shattered beneath my feet, roots and other forms of plant matter lashed outwards, streaking towards both Karin and her mount.

It worked. My plan actually worked! Karin was immediately forced on the defensive in an attempt to prevent herself from being ensnared. Her mount was not so lucky, wings becoming wrapped up, sending the two towards the ground. Regardless, Karin's wind magic was more than enough to land safely, only kicking up a small amount of dust.

I, on the other hand, came crashing down like a rocket, sending stone and dirt flying into the air. My lungs screamed for air, as I became aware how much of my body was covered in sweat. The adrenaline rush was already beginning to wear off, and I simply felt drained. Apparently switching artifacts so often was still exhausting for me. But this fight still wasn't over.

"Not many have been able to remove me from the sky. It seems fate chose my daughter's protector well," Karin spoke. "However." I was barely able to block the following strike in time, with her sword nearly grazing my cheek. She was fast! I stomped on the ground, causing an eruption of spikes to tear their way through the earth. Karin darted around the attack, continuing her assault.

I swung Doomhammer upwards in an attempt to force distance, but she maneuvered around the attack, forcing me to parry with the flaming off-hand. Strike, wait, no. Shit! Only timely earthen shard stopped me from being hit in the stomach. Another blow came in at my side. This was getting bad! Doomhammer made for a poor defensive weapon, and was running out of steam, fast. The prison trick had taken a lot out of me.

I attempted to block the screaming gale that was thrown my way with a blast of my own, which was knocked aside. The earthen spikes rose again, with Karin dodging with ease, despite her heavy armor. Lightning began to crackle around her wand-sword. My eyes were beginning to get heavy, myself teetering on the brink of collapse.

Everything I had left, every ounce of energy remaining, I released. In a single instant, lightning raged. Then, my eyes closed.

Fight time. One minute, thirty seconds.

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Oh dear, this chapter. This has something that has been on my mind for quite some time. The debate of whether or not to have Karin and Isabella fight was not an easy one. On one hand, Isabella never had a chance. Yes, her weapon's are powerful, and yes, she's a great fighter. But Karin is far stronger, far more skilled, and has decades of experience. Hell, it's pretty much cannon fact that Karin rival's Louise in raw destructive power, and suppasses her simply due to experience.

Ultimately, I decided to go with it. And Isabella simply got stomped. As far as I'm aware, out of the few other fics were Karin has fought Louise's familiar, Isabella likely is the weakest to stand against her. So I had Karin hold back a bit, if only to give Isabella a chance to show what she is capable of.

Personally, I hope I was able to attempt to live up to her capacities, and I truly hope I kept her in character as I see it. A stern, stoic, harsh, yet caring figure.

I hope you all enjoyed, and I hope to see you next time!


	26. Bond 2

*Four days ago*

A swift kick to the stomach knocked an attacker back, while her wooden sword, struck the other across his face, causing him to drop his weapon.

Agnes was hardly impressed by both of her new trainees. She hadn't expected much out of Leo, but Jacob proved to be far more lacking. Disappointing, given that despite his sister didn't have much, if any training with a sword, but could hold her own quite well.

"Up. Once more," she said, looking out over the two exhausted young men. She found it hard to believe that just yesterday that one was trying to kill her, and frankly, was doing a good job. Now, he could barely hold a sword correctly, and that had been an improvement over his former club like grip.

Leo was in a far worse state of affairs. She had seen his hammer, of course, which went far in explaining his lack of skill. Combined with just as little training as Jacob created a disaster that was already resisting improvement. At this point, she would force them onto someone else, most likely Isabella herself. But seeing as the girl had been 'kidnapped' by one of the Valliere sister's, that was no longer an option. Which left her to deal with the situation at hand. With no way of knowing when Louise or her familiar would get back, several plans were going to have to wait. Including the princess's plot to reveal any traitors currently in her court.

Unless the two developed a level of competence in the areas of combat, but that was already unlikely. Both of them had some degree of potential, but they hadn't ever needed to use it. Agnes knew the broad details of Isabella's origins. Life was simply easier where they came from. With no need for them to farm or hunt, they mostly lacked muscles that their non mage peers would. Especially in Leo's case. He shouldn't have been able to support any weight with his wiry frame, let alone his hammer.

Which left Agnes with questions of her own. Given Isabella's own word was stated to lack magic, a fact merely confirmed by the youngest of the Valliere sisters. She had to admit at first she was curious about such a world, but it diminished greatly over time. How different could it really be? Without magic, those who wanted power would simply find a different way to hold on to it. Prephase they had progressed beyond that, but Anges doubted it.

Even as deep in her own thoughts as she was, the two still hadn't been able to land a hit on her. But the fact they had managed to endure for so long was commendable. Especially Jacob. What few water mages remained were baffled by his impossibly swift recovery. For her, it didn't really matter. That way, Agnes could keep a close eye on both of them.

Under normal circumstances, the arrival of a Romainian priest would be considered a good thing. But these were no normal circumstances, and as far as Agnes knew, this was no normal priest. The fact they sent the Pope's lapdog, to the location of a suspected void mage and her familiar was alarming. Henrietta had become clearly worried for her friend, while Isabella simply didn't trust the man, though why was unknown. Regardless, the possibility that Louise's identity had been compromised was troublesome. But Louise didn't really flaunt her magical affinity as much as one might expect, and Isabella had been tight lipped on the matter.

Which meant they either had a non-Reconquista spy in their ranks, or that somehow, the Pope already knew. Both options were alarming, with the latter being more so. With her being at the Valliere estate, Louise would at least have sometime away from prying eyes. Though getting her back had the possibility of being a massive political affair, if it was even possible. If they were to win the upcoming war with Albion, having a Void Mage in their corner would be helpful. Even if they had to fight the Valliere family to get her.

That wasn't helped at all by the fact Isabella's origins were also as big of a secret. Along with anything, or anyone connected to it. Julio could not learn of the truth about Isabella's presence, let alone that of her sibling and friend. Which meant Agnes and her musketeers had to keep him away from the pair, and away from everyone else. The girls were loosed lipped, especially around Julio. He would go to them first for information, so it was likely that he knew Louise had summoned Isabella.

Keeping the two seperate from the girls had also proven difficult. Curiosity about the prior day's event, and the unfortunately true rumor that he was Isabella's brother had caused a peak in female interest that Leo thankfully didn't. Though she had to question the behavior of those who were interested. Isabella's more maschine behavior had earned the ire of more than a few male students, while a degree of popularity with female portion. This fan club of sorts immediately took a fixation on her supposed brother. Things weren't helped by the fact that they were the only three males in their age group anymore.

Agnes didn't know why Leo wasn't getting similar treatment. Maybe he had rejected previous advances, and the girls had gotten to picture. This, was again, doubtful. These girls were used to getting exactly what they wanted. Unless something had convinced they that trying to have him was a bad idea, they would simply continue until they had what they wanted.

Regardless, the less anyone knew about them, the better. Keeping them isolated, while suspicious, was simply the best option. Even if it meant she had to train both by herself. She didn't plan on leaving Julio to his own devices, with only the best present were watching his every move. What remained her musketeers were training the few students that had not been withdrawn from the academy. Which had been a lot. Many nobles were worried about the Academy being a target, and had removed their children after the initial assault.

She couldn't exactly blame them for their actions, in this case. It was natural of parents to wish to protect their children. But this was a time of war, and they need to be prepared. Reconquista wasn't going to give them forever. It was only a matter of time before they launched a larger fleet. One that might be able to overtake Tristan's meager defenses, void mage or not. Especially if the infiltrators and treasonous nobles went unopposed. Isabella and Louise's simple disappearance was already bad enough in that regard. While Louise likely wouldn't be of much use, her familiar certainly wouldn't, especially if the rumors about the sword she used were true.

But at this rate, they would have to move on ahead with their plans without them. There were too many parts in play to be stopped now. Which meant these two, like it or not, were going to have to get involved at some point. Isabella's potential problems were irrelevant. Leo's reported healing abilities and strength alone were a valuable asset, while she had seen Jacob's own abilities first hand. If those could be replicated even slightly, then maybe he could be useful.

"Again!" Anges snapped as both managed to pull their bodies out of the dirt. She could already see Leo's bruises beginning to fade, while Jacob's form told a similar tale. So far, they had proven to be uncoordinated, lacking in both subtly and skill. They attacked one at a time, failing to use their superior numbers to their advantage. Not that it would change the outcome, but it would at least be more challenging.

Jacob was the first to press the attack, lunging forward with the wooden sword in his grip. It was a decent move, if he had gotten closer and didn't telegraph as much. Agnes shifted to the right, before bringing her own wooden sword down on his exposed back. The blow landed with a solid thump, adding downward force to his forward momentum. Jacob was eating dirt, and was effectively out for this match.

Leo made his attack while she was dealing with Jacob, believing her to be distracted. He lept into the air, sword raised high. Only to receive the hilt of her blade into his stomach, stopping his momentum dead. Air exited his lungs causing Leo to drop to the ground, the wooden blade that was once in his hands tumbling out of his grasp as he clutched his stomach.

"What exactly was that?" Anges growled. She had seen many things in her time, but never before had she seen anything like that. Stupid was the best word for it. "You do not leap at somebody like a frog!"

"Thought, it would look cool," Leo managed to groan out in an attempt to hold on to his lunch. Agnes resisted the urge to slap her face with the palm of her hand. Out of all the reasons, that was the one he gave? It didn't matter if he might be able to survive being run through. Such a move was just asking to be killed. She knew he wasn't that stupid. Ok, maybe stupid wasn't the right word. More like, tactically incompetent. Yes, that would be the best way to put it. She wasn't used to many not knowing the subtleties of swords play. Most members of the Musketeer squads were handpicked, knowing either how to use guns or swords effectively. Sometimes both. She was aware that many of those who were literate, including commoners, had an idea based on dramatic stories and tales. Most likely, Earth was the same. So long as Agnes had time to expel such notions, she couldn't care less.

*Day of Karen and Isabella's duel*

Agnes's brow furrowed in annoyance. The timing was far less than ideal, but that didn't change much. Isabella would have likely arrived last night to the Valliere estate, and it was simply too late to make an attempt at recalling her. Which meant Leo and Jacob were the only ones that could take on and complete the mission.

Four days wasn't enough, as far as she was concerned, but orders were orders. If the Princess thought the plan would work, then it would. Now, she simply need a swift and efficient way to get both to the capital without drawing attention. One of the key places was the Charming Fairies Inn, was the primary point of contact. If Agnes remembered the report's correctly, then she knew its significance. Isabella and Louise had managed to capture a corrupt tax collector named Turenne. Agnes paused, an idea forming in her head.

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"What do you mean, we're heading for the Capital?" Jacob asked, though by this point things were already too late.

"The Princess has requested a military meeting, and has requested that I bring both of you along. She'd like to meet, you, Jacob, personally, seeing as your sister helped defend Tristain from attack, and to you, Leo, because she wants to discuss if it is possible to create more of those Zero fighters," Agnes said. It wasn't entirely a lie. Princess Hentrintia had been curious to meet Jacob, and desired to discus with Leo about the weapon that helped them win the Battle of Tarbes.

There was no military meeting, however. Rather, a kidnapping. Leo nodded. Something told her that he hadn't bought it. Unlike Jacob, Agnes knew Leo meet the Princess, though their interaction was brief even by generous standards.

"So, where exactly are we staying while the meeting happens. I doubt anyone, even with the Princess's recommendation, would be allowed to simple march in observe an event that important to national security," Leo stated, crossing his arms, almost causing Anges's face to slip. Such a factual and obvious statement, yet only Leo had seemed to have thought of it.

"No. We have arranged for you to stay at the Charming Fairy Inn. We weren't exactly able to pay for everything two travelers would need on such short notice without arousing suspicion, so you may be requested to work in the kitchen in the meantime," Agnes stated calmly, despite the clear looks of displeasure the two young men gave her.

"Relax. Your sister spent some time there once during a stakeout mission for us. She stated that she had a great time," she watched both responses, with Leo just simply shaking his head, while Jacob's eyebrows rose.

"So my sister really did become a medieval James Bond," Agnes was able to pick up on the faint whisper. Who exactly was James Bond?

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"So, this is it," Jacob looked up. He had to admit to himself, it looked quite nice. Two and a half to three stories in height would be his best guess. Plenty of windows gave it a nice, open feel to it. Overall, it felt like a charming place, as it's name suggested more than suitable to spend at least a few nights. "You first."

"What? Why?" Leo asked in outrage. Honestly, he had his doubts about what Agnes had said. Not the military part. Tristain was gearing up for war, and he would have a role to play one way or another. Despite Professor Colbert's objections. The aging fire mage had no desire for war, that much was clear, and it was obviously brought on by experience. Whether it was because Colbert himself had fought or he was caught in a bad place at a very wrong time during his youth, Leo didn't know. Nor, did he pry. It simply wasn't his place.

"Agnes said Isabella liked it," Jacob simply crossed his arms over his chest. "And she said sis did a stakeout for them here."

"Which makes you think she was seriously about her James Bond thing?" Leo rolled his eyes, stepping through the door. He only regret the decision immediately. Either Isabella left a very, very lasting impression on this place, or it had been like this to begin with. Neither option was appealing.

What first drew his eye was the girl standing in the room, wearing an outfit suspiciously similar to that worn by Revolutionary Girl Utena, further solidifying the idea of Isabella's influence, surrounded by a few other girls. Each wore a rather frilly dress, complete with a massive fan in hand. Though that wouldn't be as startling as second.

See, he was quite fine with what a few considered Isabella's 'odd habit' of never wearing a dress. Every school dance she went to, Isabella came in a suit. Hue showing up with her girlfriend all dressed up usually got a few 'where's Isabella?' or 'damn he's hot' moments, before everyone realized it was, in fact Isabella. She readily admitted that it was an activity she engaged in for her own amusement, though in this case, it made sense. Not many would expect a disguise exactly like that.

This made him much more prepared from what appeared to be a man in a pink dress, with green frills, wearing what had to be a purple wig, with spiraling curls. Jacob, however, did not seem as well prepared, nearly gagging.

"Hello? Are we here at a bad time?" Leo asked, finally getting the room's attention. At first, it was a simple staring contest.

"Not at all! You must be Leo and Jacob, yes?" the large male had finally turned around, proving Leo's suspicions about the wig correct. He was surprisingly buff, and quite tall. The question almost instantly drew the attention of the five girls.

"How'd you guess?" Jacob questioned, trying his hardest to keep a straight face. It was him the girl's were primarily eyeing. Honestly, Leo was beginning to expect Isabella to have a fan club.

"We do not typically rent out rooms for men, no. But, for the friend and brother of James, my fairies were willing to make an acception," the man said, with the girls in the background almost seeming to swoon at the mention of James, as Jacob developed a vein above his eye. Leo almost felt a twinge of pity for the young man. He never really had an interest in anyone, romantically or in the more primal sense. But it had to be something, having a sister that was so much better with women than he would ever be.

"Okay, my dear fairies, time to open shop. We will be very busy tonight because of the play, so be ready" the man turned around, facing the girls. Jacob's eye had begun to twitch uncontrollably.

"Yes Ma Mademoiselle!" they all cheered. Leo had to admit, this Ma Mademoiselle was strange, but it was clear that the girls simply adored him. If little else, that proved he was a good person.

"And for you two, you are needed in the kitchen. And Jacob, if you do know any of your brother's recipes, please feel free to make some. They were quite good for business," Ma Mademoiselle said. Meanwhile, Leo noticed that the twitching in Jacob's eye appeared to be contagious, seeing that it had spread from his left, to his right.

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"So, let me get this straight. James isn't James, but rather, Isabella?" the girl that had joined both of them in their cooking and cleaning duties asked. Jessica was her name, and she the one wearing what Leo thought was the Utena suit. He wasn't surprised that Jacob hadn't been able to put a name to it, seeing how Revolutionary Girl Utena was his sister's favorite series when younger.

"I'm not lying!" Jacob said, exasperated with the turn of events. Like his sister, he really had no sense of cooking. Leo did. Even if he had managed to set chocolate on fire.

"I can confirm that he isn't lying. Third party and all that," Leo sighed. He didn't exactly like the twinkle in her eye.

"That's a shame, and a missed opportunity. I'm willing to bet she would look great in a dress," the statement made Jacob's eyes to commercially grow in size, as Leo just shook his head.

"No, it's not a missed opportunity. You try to put her in a dress, you wouldn't have a building anymore. Let's just say our father tried making her wear a dress at age six. He got a punch where the sun doesn't shine, and leave it at that," Jacob seemed to shudder at the vague memory. Leo himself had also heard the story. Isabella had been punished by her parents afterwards, but they also decided that if they kept on forcing her to do something she didn't like, especially over something so minor, she would simply create more trouble. Hence why they let her start wearing suits.

"So, I heard about a play?" Leo asked, desperately trying to change topic. Thankfully, despite the strange look Jessica sent their way, she took the bait.

"It's nothing to special I will admit. A love story at it's hard, about a prince and his protective warrior princess," Jessica said proudly. Leo resisted a frown. There was a pretty clear inspiration for such an idea. A princess saving princess actually was a step up from a prince saving princess.

"Where is the performance, if you don't mind me asking?" Jacob asked, startling Leo. He couldn't tell if he asked just simply out of politeness, or interest. It was likely politeness, because Leo doubted such an event would be of interest to Jacob. However, Leo was thankful for the additional information, without having to pry for it. His continuing questions might come off as suspicious. He was fairly certain something was happening. Something big.

"Tonight we will be performing at the Taniarjina Royal Theater, I believe," Jessica grinned. "But that this point, I think my father is going to need my help, and you two look like you have everything under control." Leo merely nodded, now certain that the princess herself likely had some type of plan in motion, while Jacob wore a face of horror, mouthing 'no' at the simple idea of the man up front having children.

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It didn't take long for the inn to become packed with customers. The establishment was popular, and in a sense, Leo could see why. Drink's, and girls in frilly maid outfits. He understood the marketing behind this place. Basically, it was a medieval maid cafe that served alcoholic beverages. Normally, having a hormonal male teenager in such an environment would be a bad thing. Poor decision making on top of a substance that affect the logic centers of the brain was a bad mix. One of the many reason's he and Isabella avoided parties. But Jacob had Isabella as family. Being in close proximity to an avid anti-drinker left it's mark.

Leo took a look at the back door, before narrowly eyeing someone that he actually recognized. Vittorio had arrived sometime prior. Leo, while not sharing in Isabella's outright mistrust of the man, now found present circumstances to possibly prove her concerns correct. Besides, Jacob should have been done with the trash by now.

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Jacob let out a grumble, dragging the wooden crate full of garbage into the alleyway. Really? He was in a magical world, yet he still had to do the same chores he did at home? Talk about lame.

His thoughts were interrupted as a hooded figure wearing a clock bumped into him. Whoever the person was fell over, landing on their rear. For a moment, he contemplated just ignoring them. After all, they clearly weren't paying attention to where they were going. Ultimately, he decided against it.

"Are you ok?" Jacob finally offered, extending his hand downward, allowing the person who ran into him to pull themselves up.

"Um, is there a shop called 'Charming Fairy' around here?" a voice asked from underneath the cloak. It clearly belonged to a female. He immediately became curious, about why.

"That would be," he tried to get out, before his body was pulled against the wall, his mouth covered by a hand, as a group of guards ran past. A criminal? No, this was something different. Silently, the hood fell down, revealing purple hair. For a moment, he paused, looking at her. Purple hair. He knew Isabella had mentioned that earlier, and she made use of a name. Was it? No, it couldn't be.

"Princess?" Jacob asked, only to be shushed again. Well, something was happening. Why couldn't Isabella be here? She was the one who liked dealing with all the wacky shenanigans.

"I need your help," she said softly, beginning to drag him along.

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Thankfully, it wasn't a long trip to the room that Jacob and Leo had found themselves sharing. Jacob shifted against the wall, uncomfortable. He had no idea how to react in this type of situation. Be respectful was about as far as his knowledge went.

"I don't know what's going on, but I'll go get Leo," Jacob offered, desperately trying to find a way out of this situation. He was in over his head.

"Please don't. Leo is to assist Agnes in her part of the mission. Please, be my bodyguard for the next several hours,' the Princess stated. Her voice was kind, but her eyes were full of steel. This wasn't something Jacob was simply going to be able to walk away from.

"Bodyguard?" Jacob's voice sounded exasperated, "You're the Princess! You should have plenty of people far more qualified than I ever will be!" Hentria only undid the clamp that allowed the cloak to hang from around her neck.

"I'm the Queen, actually," she smiled, as if understanding that he didn't know much about the situation. "And I must act while undercover." Jacob let out a sigh. Well, if the cards were already in play, he might as well deal with what he was dealt.

"Ok, since it's an order from the Queen, and seeing as I don't see any other options, I'll accept," Hentrintia's face lit up at the comment. "Just promise me this won't end with my sister wanting to hurt me afterwards."

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Dang, I think I got this chapter done, in like a single week, maybe a little less. Having characters besides Isabella and Louise taking center stage feels like it helped. I mean, I've written about them for twenty five chapters, with them taking up center stage. That is the longest that I've ever written about any character for a story ever.

And it's all because of those who read this story, favorite it, and review it. Thank you so much for actually taking to the time out of your day to read what I've wrote. Seriously, I wouldn't have gotten this far without you. I cannot thank you enough. This stories first year has come and gone, and I'm still updating. This is the largest project I've ever done. All of it because of you.

I hope you enjoy more of Leo and Jacob's adventure's in Tristian, because Isabella and Louise aren't coming back for a few chapters.

I hope you all enjoyed, and I hopefully will see you again next chapter!


	27. Bond 3

King Quinn: I really do want to use Leo and Jacob more than I have. After all, at this point I have two characters that I created that have been relegated to the sidelines. Hopefully, these next few chapter's allow me to develop their characters.

Now, on with the show!

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"I don't think any of the shirts we packed are going to be able to fit you," Jacob kept his eyes on the corner of the room. He would have much rather have exited temporarily but that didn't appear to be an option. Which meant he was alone with a changing female in a small room.

For some, if not many, this would be a dream come true. However, growing up with a sister that only better with girls than he was, alongside having being respectful drilled into his skull by many of his older family members. Which, pretty much made it so he was keeping his eyes closed until told otherwise. While facing the corner for good measure.

That didn't stop good old teenage hormones from doing their job. At the moment, he would love to do nothing more than turn around. But that would likely result in more than a few unpleasant things happening to him. Unpleasant things Jacob would much rather do without.

"Unfortunately, I think you may be right," the princess's voice was heard over the rustling of fabric. Naturally, none of their clothes exactly fit the time period, and even if they were, there was no conceivable way it would fit her. Isabella? It would be a bit of a fit due to her height, but it was doable. Louise? The clothes would be much too large for her slim frame, but they would fit. Even Agnes would fit in their clothing better than her future monarch.

"I think this should fit," she finally said, with the sound's created by the fabric reminding Jacob of a button up shirt. He certainly didn't remember packing one, so it must have been Leo's. The sound of struggling reached his ears, before Hentrintia let out a sigh of defeat. "You can turn around now."

Cautiously, Jacob did just that. She had chosen a long pair of pants, and while they certainly not like most, they were more than passable, especially if they weren't closely expected. Unfortunately, it was going to be the button up shirt that was the biggest issue. Put simply, it was impossible for her to button up the last few buttons, leaving a clear view of her cleavage. Jacob immediately averted his eyes away from display, trying to fight back a blush.

Something inside Jacob wanted him to wish Leo good luck. At this rate, they were both going to need it.

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Leo frowned as he watched the patron's slowly start filing out. Jacob wasn't back from trash duty yet. Heck, he had check the back alley every time he got the chance. Normally, he wouldn't be that worried. With each passing day, Leo was becoming more and more aware of what exactly he and Jacob were now capable of.

If Jacob had been attacked, there would be blood or any other signs of struggle. And besides that, Leo would be much more worried about the potential attacker than Jacob himself. Part of the reason Agnes was able to beat them down day in and day out, besides her training, was the simple due to the fact they couldn't operate at full capacity. As far as Leo could tell, two things caused their powers to manifest fully.

The first was simple. Have the weapon in your hand. Seeing as those could be summoned on conscious command, there was no issue in that department. The second wasn't something he had much time to test, and was more of theory than anything else, but being in a life threatening situation should do the trick. However, seeing how the last time went, Leo was less than willing to test Jacob's fight or flight responses. At least without Isabella there, but that brought forth a new set of issues.

But since there was no sign of struggle, he had to assume Jacob went willingly. Which meant something was up. The increasing amounts of guards in the streets only further proved his suspicions. Something had happened. Strange. Out of all the things Agnes could of lied about, he was certain the military meeting wasn't one of them.

Which meant that someone clearly thought this up, and their presence was part of the plan. Or, more likely, their presence was the plan B. Personally, Leo knew that the second option was likely the case. After all, this had seemed to become Isabella's deal. You know, kick ass, save the world, that sort of thing. Or the princess, if that was really who needed saving. Though he wouldn't exactly put it past some type of crazy plot.

Leo was certain the princess had been actually kidnapped a few days ago. By the corpse of her boyfriend, no less. Isabella would only use Ashbringer against the unliving, and that would be about the only person that would be able to get the princess to come without signs of struggle. Either somebody was really stupid, or they were trying to capture someone who was. That, or they were trying to capture someone overconfident enough to believe this would happen twice in a short span of time.

Regardless, that meant that for now, all he simply had to do was wait. If what he thought was going down really was, that had to mean Jacob was with the Princess already. Such would explain why he went missing. If not, well, then he was going to have to deal with it later. So who would that leave him with throughout the rest of this? Isabella and Louise were detained, or something along those lines, and who else would the Princess trust for this type of operation? Ignoring the fact she didn't really have reason trust them with this type of operation. Honestly, he probably just answered his own question, anyway. Isabella was the reason why, arguably, at least in Jacob's case. Leo had participated in the Battle of Tarbs which due to the Zero fighter, had been a resounding success.

Really, the only person that would really make sense to be in on this from the start was Agnes. The leader of the Musketeers, the Princess's personal guard. For an operation like this, such a group would prove themselves to be effective. And it would be easier to catch people that were used to underestimating those without magic.

Regardless, a plot like this came with risk, and the Princess, or anyone that looked like her, couldn't be anywhere near her normal guardians without rousing suspicion. So someone would have to be with the Princess until the operation was completed. Someone they could trust. And it was no secret to him the Isabella and Louise had become the go to for situations like this.

With made them the replacement. Leo wasn't sure if he was glad or insulted about that. Glad would probably be the best. That way, he would only be forced to acknowledge how weird his life had become once every so often. Which, even he had to admit had become extremely strange. If someone told him that he would be were he was today, he would have simply told them to stop drinking. And were exactly the person had gotten it, because that had to be some pretty strong stuff.

But, yeah, staying in whole other world where magic was real, because your best friend was summoned by what appeared to be a twelve year old girl was not something anyone should expect in life. Then bringing her brother for the ride because of his own experimentation was simply icing on the cake.

However, that meant he was going to need to keep an eye out for Agnes. Which, at this point, meant getting out in the cold rain. Leo let out a sigh. Hopefully, Jacob was having better luck than he was.

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"Are you sure this is safe?" Henrietta asked, keeping close to Jacob. Shadow's flickered around them, vaguely humanoid in shape. Even the buildings around them seemed off, as if they weren't even there at all. While it didn't seem like they had to deal with any of the guards, at the same time, this simply left her with a feeling of unease.

"I'm certain. Trust me, I don't want to go further than this either. I can, but, it just feels, wrong," Jacob stated, keeping a grip on his sword. Leo had decided that it was best to run a few experiments with his powers a few days back. This was the one he loved to hate. Effectively, it allowed him almost phase into a different reality with it's own levels. The deeper he went, the more alien things became. There came a point when things just simply became too creepy for him to handle. This was merely the first of these layers. Things were still visible, but one could truly not see what was on the other side. He wouldn't desire to go deeper in a city, seeing as that he'd likely just cut off their path with shadowy buildings.

Still, it was much better than those horrifying dolls. Seriously, those things did nothing more than stand around and look creepily at anything in their line of sight. Cocked heads and hollow eyes that just seemed to tunnel straight into the soul.

"I think it would be best if we leave this place. I think we are passed the guards now," Hentritia spoke, her voice was steady, but it still had a hint of unease to it. Still, she was taking this much better than he had. There was a lot of screaming and panicking the first time around. And swinging around a sword that was larger than its wielder.

Still, this didn't look like the best of places to come through to reality. Even if they had passed the guards, they were still on a crowded street. Phasing in would attract a lot of attention. Attention that was not wanted or needed, and would only serve to draw the very same guards they were trying to avoid directly to them.

Turning left, both of them turned into a small alleyway. After checking, then double checking, for any shadow's in the area. Only when Jacob was certain did he cut his way through. Reality parted ways, creating a small hole of shadow. In the center, a picture remained of a cloudy, rainy sky.

Personally, Jacob never thought he was ever going to get used to walking straight forward, but being spat out upwards. Henrietta seemed to share a similar sentiment, seeing as her reaction was nothing more than a startled blink. With no screaming, sounds of shattered glass, or sharp intakes of breath, it appeared that their moments had gone undetected.

Which was good, seeing as Henrietta didn't want to go back, and if someone had seen them, they likely would have needed to use it as an escape route. Even Isabella wouldn't be able to deny just simply how effective it was. Being able to enter an undetectable pocket dimension and still have complete mobility was a great thing.

Henrietta was the first to pop her head outside of the alleyway, looking for any signs of the guards. The storm had taken many who didn't have to be outside off the streets. Which wasn't really good for them, the longer they stayed out. As far as Jacob was concerned, the best thing to do was not stick out. Staying outside in a rainstorm, with a person that just so happened to look like the Princess was doing the opposite of that.

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Leo had managed to haggle a dark green cloak to throw over his body. Despite this, the rain continued to hammer down, as more guards filled the streets. He was having very little luck in his search. So far, no Agnes and no Princess. Not being able to find the Princess was understandable. At this stage of the game, it was all too likely that she had bunkered down and was waiting for the guards to pass. Agnes, however, would be actually trying to solve the issue at hand. At the moment, it was best for him to simply wait and keep an eye out for suspicious activity. That would be exactly were Agnes would be.

Leo's eyes shifted left to right, trying to find something, anything, to go on. Inspections seemed to make it mandatory that the hood of any clock stayed down. Immediately, Leo caught sight of a man with a black cloak, complete with hood. Well, if that didn't just scream suspicious, then he didn't know what did.

The man had clearly slipped past the guards, and was heading toward one of the inns. If this was the spy, what was the prior protocol? Let him contact his superiors and draw out his fellow conspirators, or simply take him out, here and now. No, scratch that, the later would be terrible idea. If the goal was to get them out into the open, then the last thing needed to happen was starting to remove pawns off the board. If pawns went down, then the big fish would know that something was up, and would be harder to flush out. This infection needed to be dealt with in one swoop. Which ultimately meant that the infiltrators needed to think they were the ones in control. Risky, but Leo couldn't deny that it was utterly brilliant.

Now, if only he could find whoever it was who was supposed to be keeping an eye of this particular individual. That is, if he really was some type of spy or informant. Likely a member of Agnes's Musketeers, if he had to take a guess. What? A new organization in it's infancy whose members made up of only female commoners, a group of people the noble elites never took seriously. Combine that with simply the fact this organization was more or less a secret. Meaning they could be out in the public without being easily identified. For an operation such as this, such would prove to be a great asset.

Agnes finally came into view, appearing not far behind whom Leo assumed was her target. Her cloak was similar to his, a dark green that didn't stick out. Well, it was only a matter of whether he actually wanted to get involved or not, or even if he should. Agnes was skilled, talented, and most importantly, experienced. Leo, on the other hand, was not.

Honestly, she was more than capable to dealing with this by herself. Leo knew that odds were, he'd simply just get in the way. Maybe, just maybe, a person to interact with might give her some cover, but regardless, it the end, he would likely just slow her down.

Speaking on nothing but a strategic mindset, it would be best for him to keep his distance, and simply keep any eye out for if things went wrong. It's not like he had any experience outside of watching old spy movies. For now, he would simply stay out of sight and out of mind. After all, wasn't that the best place to be? But wait, wouldn't that mean he'd have to stay outside? In the rain?

Leo sighed. So he could intervene, likely mess things up, or he could stay outside in the rain. Neither choice was appealing to him in the long run. However, this was Agnes's mission, and if she actually wanted or needed help, she knew exactly where she had lodged the two of them. If she wanted help, the task of finding them would have been trivial.

At this point, it was clear those were things she didn't want. Therefore, it was for the best to not get involved. However, at this point, he would likely be unable to re-enter the Charming Fairy Inn via, well, legal, means. Which meant he was out on the cold, wet street with nothing to do. Didn't Scarron mention that they were performing a play? Well, seeing how he was that bored, and had little else to do, he might as well take a look and see exactly what this play was about. After all, it really couldn't be that bad, right? And even if by some twist of fate utterly terrible, then it at least be good for a laugh.

Now, just where exactly was the theater?

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"I hope this is ok, Princess," Jacob stated, rubbing the coldness from his limbs. It felt like he had been sitting in a car for hours with the air conditioner cranked up to max. He was sure the Princess felt worse, seeing as all she had to protect from the cold was her poorly fitting shirt. It didn't help that the room was clearly of extremely poor quality, with creaky floors and several small holes in the wall. Honestly, he had expected mice or bats to be in the room, likely seeking shelter from the storm outside.

"It is fine. I thank you for your concern," Henrietta spoke, sitting on the small bed. Despite her current situation, she was more than capable of keeping a regal appearance. Though the clothing she wore was drenched from the rain. If he could, Jacob would offer her a towel. It wouldn't do much, but it certainly would be better than just letting her remain in her current state. Of course, all it took was a flick of her wand for all the water in her clothing was pulled out.

Jacob jumped back slightly, startled by the action. He knew magic existed here, of course, but he had never seen it. Yeah, he was staying, reluctantly, at a magical academy, but Agnes had kept him busy enough, so he was incapable to satisfying his curiosity. It seemed stupid, especially now. Leo never showed any surprised about the stuff, but he had been around it for much longer the he had.

Personally, he felt a bit stupid for his reaction. Even if he hadn't seen magic, Jacob knew that those who belonged to noble families had such power. It only made sense for noble family to be the same. Clearly the Princess had a taste for water magic. Or a talent, whatever the case may be. But he knew that beforehand. Isabella had spend more than her visit home talking to whoever she could get to listen.

Most of it, he had assumed, was little more than exaggeration at best. But now, Jacob was forced to accept that yes, his sister as friends with a Princess, and somehow become her agent. Naturally, he wasn't up to date on the list of exploits, but at this point, it was likely more than impressive.

"You're not used to seeing magic, are you?" Henrietta questioned in a teasing manner. Jacob paused, looking at her, and frowning.

"No, Princess, I have not," Jacob said. At this point, his dignity was not leaving this place intact. Might as well just go along with the flow.

"You can drop the formalities you know. Just call me Henrietta," the princess said, looking at him in the eye. Oh, right they ere supposed to be undercover. Which meant not only should formalities be dropped, they needed to be dropped for the time being.

"Oh course, Princ, I mean, Henrietta," Jacob nearly missaid. It had only been practically a hour or two at most, you he was already accustomed to Princess, rather than her name. Of course, he didn't know her well enough to consider her a friend at this point, but a there had to more to her than just a title.

However, any further conversation was cut short but the sound of heavy footfalls. Armor rattled down the hall. Guards. That was the last thing either of them needed. Jacob's eyes flashed around the room frantically, trying to figure out a way to escape. The window was likely guarded, and even if they feld through the other dimension, the guards would know that the room was rented out. Escape would do nothing more than paint a target on their backs. But they needed a way out!

The events the followed shocked him in every way. As the door raced open, Henrietta's grabbed his shirt, yanking him forward. Jacob found himself thrown off balance, stumbling forward. Next thing he knew, he was over Henrietta's body, her lips pressed against him. Immediately Jacob's mind went blank.

"Open up!" Loud knocking erupted from the door, but Henrietta didn't stop. The knocking and shouting continued to get louder and louder, until the door swung open. Jacob could not see what was on their faces, but even if he could, he likely wouldn't care. However, they were clearly shocked, simply standing in the doorway like puppet's with their strings cut. Both men stared slack jawed taken by nothing short of complete surprise.

Both men began to stutter, faces covered in crimson. Whatever training they may have had, it didn't prepare them for walking in on two people as they made out. After a few seconds of awkward gocking, both men left, closing the door behind them. Henrietta who was clearly paying more attention, let him go immediately afterwards. Jacob stumbled backwards, shaking his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts. He felt as if he just pulled himself through an ocean of mud, brain following behind sluggishly. There was guards, then Henrietta had kissed him, then the guards were gone.

She had just saved both of them. While he was busy panicking, trying to find a way out, Henrietta had not only been able to formulate a plan to prevent them from being caught, but also, a way to encourage the guards not to return.

But it didn't stop her from looking guilty. Something was on her mind after the kiss, and even it was only to create a diversion, her face showed it was something she didn't want to do. Jacob tried to rack his brain, thinking of what might be the cause. He didn't know much, beyond the fact that the reason Isabella had been unable to visit during the Nightmare incident and afterwards was due to the fact Tristain was either on the verge of war, or was in one, Isabella hadn't been specific, likely to panic their parents. Such, she was busy running all sorts of missions.

It was possible she viewed Isabella as a good friend and felt guilty about kissing her brother, but he didn't think that was the case. Jacob was convinced his sister had a crush on Louise, and the feelings were likely mutual with Louise. No, he was fairly certain her regret resulted from the kiss, or, more accurately, what it represented. Had she lost someone extremely close recently?

"Prin…. Henrietta, if there is something you don't want to talk about, it's fine," Henrietta's gaze turned his way. She seemed ready to burst into tears. Tears of grief and loss. "But if you want to talk, I'll try my best to listen."

And so, they talked.

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The rain had finally came to a stop. They had spend the rest of the time before the operation truly began simply talking. Henrietta talked, actually, he did his best to listen. However, her story put Jacob into a bad mood. He had a better understanding of Henrietta now. She was caring, compassionate, and willing to put her people before herself. And she certainly did not deserve the hand she had been dealt.

Forcing herself into a marriage to protect her country, only to have a talented, high ranking member of her military stab her in the back, leaving her nation without protection and the real love of her life in a pool of blood! Only for the very same people that robbed her of all that to us his corpse in a kidnapping attempt, which caused her to turn against the people trying to save her! Only for the very last her lover's life energy made her promise to move on! All the while those very same people are actually trying to correct her country from the inside out.

No wonder Henrietta reacted like she did. It was mind boggling the amount of things she was dealing with. He knew he couldn't do that. Jacob freaked out over a multiple choice question under a time limit. Henrietta dealt this all that, plus whatever else she was thinking, and executed a plan without fail.

The streets had cleared out, with both guards and people becoming less common. It took a few minutes, but they finally managed to reach their destination. Massive walls of marble with large glass windows on side wings. In front, the road twisted into a circle drive. Plenty of people, only give credence to Scarron's claim.

Agnes was easy enough to spot, even in the dark. Her blonde hair kind of made her stick out against the darker background. After a brief set of goodbyes, Henrietta followed her musketeer captain into the building. Jacob let out a sigh, unsure of what to do next. He knew that they were going to do. But should he stay, hold back, or accompany them?

"So this is where you've been," a voice said from behind him, causing Jacob to jump up, biting back a scream of surprise. While the voice was familiar to him, it didn't stop his reaction.

"Leo, what are you doing here?" Jacob snapped, whipping around the moment his feet returned to the ground. Leo wore a smirk on his face, clearly telling what he thought about the situation at hand.

"I could ask you the same thing, but I'll save you the obvious embarrassment. I'm here to see a play, in which it just so happens that several treasonous government elements have gathered, all unwitting drawn into the princesses trap to be arrested," Leo's look of smugness only grew. There wasn't going to be any dealing with him for next several days.

"So, let me guess. We are going to go watch the play, and if something just so happens to go horribly wrong, we will be in position to intervene," Jacob said, crossing his arms.

"He can be taught," Leo grinned, "besides, what you think I've been doing all night while you've been off playing bodyguard for the Princess?"

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"So it seems like Isabella inspiring this was incorrect," Jacob got a quick jab to the stomach for his remark, alongside with a short shush from Leo. Leo's own gaze was turned toward the cloaked masses down bellow. One of them was the Princess and her guards. The other group was likely those loyal to the two traitors.

They talked in hushed whispers, unable to be heard over noise of the play. Maybe a few people around them might, but it was unlikely for anyone to report it, seeing how it would the words of commoners and lower nobility opposed to the words of high ranking officials. Well, that would be if it wasn't for the person directly behind them being one of the few people above them. Of course they would talk about this right after the Princess had been kidnapped. She, naturally wouldn't be there, and anyone else with power over them would likely be on the search anyway.

As far as Leo was concerned, this was another check mark in the genus box for Henrietta. Only a few words came to mind, among them being simply brilliant. She was rapidly proving to a critical political mind, hardly being held back by lack of experience. It was almost scary to think about how good she might become at this.

With a flare for the dramatic, Henrietta removed the cloak from her form, with her musketeer's burst from their placements. Both traitors were taken by surprise, but their forces were not, removing their own cloaks and leaping into the fray. Fighting quickly broke out, causing Leo to loss site of one of the conspirators, along with Agnes.

"I'll make sure the performers get out of here. You make sure the Princess stays safe!" Leo shouted over the chaos, hammer flashing into existence, much smaller than normal. Jacob paused, looking for an opening. He would only have a moment of surprise, and he wanted to make the most of it.

Jacob moved, swiftly, sword cutting into reality in a swirl of shadow. The blade remained it's full length, impossibly large. But it effectively did it's job, blocking a downward sword strike. Effectively, the shorter steel sword nearly shattered on contact. Jacob released his right hand from the sword, bracing it against the blade itself.

Jacob swiftly check his corner's, before using the serrated hook that came out the hilt, before finishing the job. Taken by surprise, the swordsmen took a step back, but the action didn't prevent his sword from being bisected. Really, at this point, Jacob probably should have had something amazing to say. Well, no matter, being silent would likely be for the best.

Still, they were winning. They had been winning. The musketeer's under Agnes's command clearly were much better trained than common mercenaries. Still, he was a bit surprised that neither of the mages had jumped in yet. Probably they were trying to make an escape. Well was, seeing as one of them just performed a double backflip with Leo's help.

Still, it was a bit worrying for Agnes to vanish. It was likely that she went after the other conspirator, but a cornered rat was the most dangerous rat. But he wasn't going to be able to find her. There was probably some type of hidden tunnel or something. He just hoped Agnes made it out ok.

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A little bit weak of a conclusion, I know. But I really do hope everyone enjoyed reading. College has started back up for me, but I do think I'll be able to keep my update schedule constant until my October class kicks in, though things may be a bit slower from here on out.

I hope to see from you next chapter!


	28. Catch the Spy

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After the Princess was saved, conspirators imprisoned, and a pat on the back for a job well done, Leo and Jacob were escorted back to the Academy, where they would ultimately attempt to catch up on some much needed sleep. However, no plan survives contact with the enemy, especially when that enemy has plans of their own.

Even if they were staying in two completely separate parts of the academy, both heard the blast. In the minds of many, an explosion simply meant Louise, so they tuckered back in for the night. Leo and Jacob, while aware of Louise's own mishaps, knew better in the long run. Louise didn't strike them as the type to return in the middle of the night just to blow something up, so they immediately set out.

Jacob and Leo followed the string of faculty that seemed to have the same line of reasoning as they had, ultimately making their way to the sources. The principal's office. A hole had been bored into the wall, more than enough to allow a man to pass through unhindered. Clearly, a break in. But where they after, and were they successful? At the moment, it was impossible to tell. Even Agnes had managed to make her return at some point, and at the moment she appeared to be talking to the principal.

The man himself was stroking his long, white beard, lost in thought. Regardless, things were already on a sour note. This was like the Floquet incident all over again.

"Professor!" Leo said, getting the attention of the balding middle age man. "Do you have any idea what's going on here?" Meanwhile, Jacob let out a yawn, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He was not used to having to get up in the middle of the night, let alone to investigate unknown explosions.

"No, I just got here myself," the man said, looking toward the room. Agnes and one of her lieutenants were standing besides the principal. The combined size of their bodies wasn't enough to obscure the blast's results. "It appears that a ruffian broke into the Headmaster's office." Leo merely frowned. There was a hope that with the ringleader captured, that the rest of the infiltrators, spies, and saboteurs would be forced underground, of not placed behind bars as well. It seems like they missed one. Though that didn't answer what this one sought, why they sought it, and what seeking it out would cause.

For it to be secured in such a location meant it was valuable. Something that should, needed, to be hard to acquire. One of the safest places to lock a valuable in. But that failed to explain anything else. Leo's eyes narrowed.

"Don't worry, everybody. It was only a minor incident," the old man said, turning around. Leo and Jacob's thoughts could be effectively summarized as bullcrap. In no way was this possibly a minor incident, nor was this something to be easily shrugged off.

"Everyone, return to your rooms," Agnes said, causing muttering to rise up from the small crowd that had gathered, which only seemed to annoy the leader of the Musketeers. "I ordered you all to leave. The Musketeer Corps will investigate the cause of the explosion. You are all dismissed."

While the muttering increased for a few seconds, everyone knew that crossing Agnes was a bad idea. Under any circumstances. What few of the young mages that lacked survival instincts were shown exactly where they were placed in the pecking order, and they served as an example.

"Expect for these two." Jacob groaned inwardly, and Leo resisted the urge to let out a sigh. There was no rest for the replacements, and certainly none from the weary.

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The room itself was dark, despite the hallway being full from the soft glow of magical candles. Most of the room looked like it was in perfect order, excluding the safe, which also had a hole in it, appearing to be carved out of it by fire.

"The ruffian broke in while I was gone and destroyed this safe," Old man Osman started. "However, my familiar was watching as events unfolded, so it came to get me." He whispered something to the small, white mouse on his shoulder.

"She was very nimble, and managed to get away in no time." the man continued, seeming reminisce on something as he picked up what looked like a stamp. Leo had no idea what he was thinking of, but it looked like one of those pervy old man looks that happened in anime.

"What was in the fault?" Jacob asked, officially curios. Money, gold, jewels, magical artifacts?

"The Wind Ruby and the Water Ruby. Queen Henrietta told me to hold onto them the other day," the old man said. Leo scowled. He had a passing awareness of what those were, of course. That also meant that all of them were about to be in so much trouble! But, nobody seemed to be freaking out. "She said they were precious items to her, but were too much of a pain to keep close by."

"You mean to say the thief thought the Wind and Water Rubies were in that vault, correct? After all, if they that valuable, and they were actually stolen, we would be tearing this place apart trying to find them, right?" Leo said, thinking hard on the matter. Something that valuable, things that clearly showed themselves to be easy enough to steal, then it made no sense to leave them in such a place. The only real reason would be to use fakes as bait, and keep the real ones someplace that you knew wouldn't be taken easily.

"Smart," Osmund nodded, stroking his white beard. Leo could pinpoint a slight smile between his whiskers.

"You mean the Rubies in the safe were fakes?" one of the Musketeers asked. Like the rest, her hair was short, but was blue, one of Halkgenia's more exotic colors. Leo made a mental note to keep any eye on her to the best of his ability. Hair that was abnormal by earth standards was a trait that all mages didn't have, but it wasn't a trait he had seen any commoners with, either. That combined with her reaction, already made him suspicious.

"The real ones aren't here. I forwarded them to a friend in Romania," the old man continued to nod. Jacob sighed, but Leo had to agree with the cleverness. Acting like the Rubies were in one place, while really in another was simply brilliant. Risky, if the person knew what they had ahold of, but by the time a thief managed to even get close enough to make an attempt, they would end up with broken cover, and nothing to show for it.

"Is it really all right to give Her Highness' precious items to a foreigner?" the bluenette asked.

"It's safer than keeping them at the Palace or at this Academy," Osmund responded. He was correct. Isabella had talked about how both had been infiltrated before.

"There were no signs of anybody escaping from or entering the campus," Agnes stated, stepping forward.

"Which means the thief is still on the premises, and the Rubies are still in their possession," Jacob finished. It looks like their work cutting off the enemy spy ring had it's advantages. "And seeing how magic was used to accomplish this, this makes any mage suspect." Jacob was correct on that one. But how perfect of a disguise would a mage pretending to be a commoner be?

He knew crime drama's, and how they worked their plot devices. Very rarely was the original suspect guilty. It was going to be someone, who, as far as they were aware, weren't mages in the first place. However, it was time to get this show on the road.

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"Out of all the places to mark a person, he has to do it there, What type of pervy old man throws a magical stamp at a person's chest, anyway?" Jacob seemed more than a bit irritated. Not from the outcome, but the fact their biggest clue was that the thief would have a magical sigil on one of their breasts. "There has got to be an easier way to accomplish this!"

Leo agreed, with both sentiments. That stamp would only confirm the identity, but it couldn't be the base of their investigation. If it was, then they were stepping on an ethical landmine that will and should get them killed.

"Correct. The stamp will only confirm the identity, but it must not serve as our base," Leo nodded to himself. "Agnes's list of suspects is extremely large, and mine is even larger than that. We must learn who it is not, without a shadow of a doubt. Only then do we send them to Agnes for the final test."

"Larger? Let me guess, you think there is a chance the infiltrator is diagnosed as a non mage?" Jacob questioned, earning another nod from Leo. Well, that was great. How were they supposed to test that?

"Like i said, we must find out who it is not. I doubt many of the students have the magical skill or affinity required for such an operation, and even if they did, almost none would have respect or knowledge in the art of stealth. While the teachers certainly have the skill, they don't have the athleticism or knowledge of infiltration," Leo went on. "While it wouldn't hurt to check, but I doubt we'll find much if anything."

"So you think it's either a servant or one of the musketeers?" Jacob had to bite back to keep from shouting. That seemed impossible! But at the same time, it would be the safest place to be. Nobody would expect a military core made of commentaries to have a mage. Well, clearly, somebody did.

"I'm thinking of a way to definitely test each student's magical affinity, a combination of task, requiring specific combinations of magic. There'll have to be a carrot attached, of course. For the teachers, simply seeing if they could pick a lock with and without magic should be sufficient." Leo continued, almost seeming to ignore Jacob. "We send those who pass off to Agnes for final inspection."

"But you don't expect anyone to pass, do you?" Jacob asked. Leo nodded again. One would either need to be at minimum, a line class mage to break in, and at most, a triangle. At their strongest points, the students might be line, at best, and it wasn't a guarantee that if they were, they had the necessary magical affinity to do so.

"No, I don't. They shouldn't be able to pick the lock without wind magic, and even if they could, that would result in the following two trails to be impossible," Leo nodded to himself. Of course, that wasn't the only factor. If the trap actually worked out, that was fine and dandy. In reality an infiltrator would either skip the event entirely, if not fudge their own results. In reality, it was meant to eliminate suspects, not catch them.

The event would be watched, naturally, to watch for cheaters and observe the results. Though, they needed to first construct an area for the event to take place in. Rapidly. The longer they spent, the more time the thief had to find a place to stash them, or worse, escape. Well, it seemed like neither of them was getting any more sleep tonight.

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By sunrise, many of the students were confused by the new structure that found itself in one of the courtyards. It's dark surface seemed to absorb all light that came into contact with it. Even with a stone wall raising out from one end, it appear ominous. A factor only added by Leo's appearance of exhaustion. Was it related to the break in last night?

Leo was considered odd by more than a few. A commoner that was friends with Isabella wasn't exactly surprising, but the fact one of their teachers also got along with him, and they both shared a teacher student relationship. Though it who doing the teaching, and who was being taught had been up for debate. However, what truly made him stick out was his immunity to Kirchie's charms. Rumor had it he was gay, but at the same time, he wasn't phased by Julio, either.

His earlier arrival and disappearance had given him a bit of mystery, but his return and desire to stay only partially enhanced that. He did seem privy into some type of military research, and likely was working on a project for the Princess herself. But at the same time, he typically kept to himself. Isabella was the only one to really drag him out, and even then, it was with him being willing.

Jacob was just interesting. Despite him and his sister sharing hardly any physical similarities, most didn't have a hard time making that connection. He wasn't bad looking, for a commoner, with black hair and brown eyes. However, nobody was really willing to make a move towards him. Firstly, it would bring shame onto their houses to take such a man as a lover, and second, nobody wanted to deal with Isabella's sisterly wrath.

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Kirche, like many of the other students had found their way to the courtyard, curious about the new structure at the academy. In fact, she heard Leo talking about how it was a challenge, and if they succeeded, they would get a reward. The first one could be seen when the doors in front opened or closed, showing another door.

But seeing how it didn't appear to have been opened yet, had to mean there was something more to it. Did they need to open it with a certain type of magic? Every once and awhile, she saw someone exit from the side. So the trial consisted of three separate steps. The door up front, being first, the wall in the back, as the last, with an unknown in the middle.

It took a few moments, but the redhead was able to spot Tabitha leaning against a wall, book in hand, though she seemed to have her eyes on the small structure, rather than on the page. The bluenette gave a nod, recognizing her friends approach.

"Do you know what happening here?" Kirchie asked her friend, leaning her back against the wall as another of her classmates failed. What had likely started as a few had become a line, each failure adding to the glory of someone else's success.

"Break in last night," Tabitha responded. Kirchie knew her friend wasn't one for words, but this was pretty big. She frowned, thinking back to the Fouquet incident. That could have easily gone better, and the idea of another criminal running around made her feel uneasy.

"And this is to help catch them?" Kirchie questioned, puzzled. She didn't see how this was supposed to help.

"No. To find out who isn't," Tabitha shock her head. Kirchie paused. That made perfect sense, in a way. The real thief wouldn't fall for such an obvious trap. But however, appealing to her peer's pride, a scenario was set up to blatantly find out who it wasn't. Not only that, it was a trap the thief wouldn't fall for anyway, adding another layer of security to the assessment.

Though that did raise questions as to why Tabitha was able to see through it, but hardly anyone else. Maybe it would be for the best if she just did it anyway, get any suspicion aimed towards her out of the way.

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Testing every single mage at the academy was nearly a day long chore, and the school was only at half capacity. Still, they managed to get everyone tested, which only reified what was already on file. Almost all students were dot images, with only a handful of lines sprinkled in, while faculty were mostly line and triangle, class, with a few squares, but Osmund and Colbert appeared to be obsolved, given their placement at the time of the crime. Even average triangle was unable to pick the lock, which was a replica of the one on Osmund's office doors.

To be blunt, Agnes wasn't exactly happy about the findings, and what exactly that implied. Anything from kidnapping and impersonation, to other, even more dangerous levels of disguise.

"At this point, it's safe to assume that the thief is not one who we would expect to be a mage," Leo said, pushing the paper forward. "At this point, beyond searching every person and their quarters, which I doubt will work, seeing as it would be foolish to leave such incriminating items on their person, there isn't much we can do."

"Well, at least this shows that they haven't kidnapped any student's, at least," Agnes sighed, more out of frustration than anything else. The thief remained on the loose, and there was nothing them seemed to be able to do about it.

"Honestly, the best thing we can do is wait and plan for the opponents next move. Since they know that the Jewel's are fake, it's likely they'll try to plant them on someone else, in an attempt to incriminate them as an accomplice." Leo stated. It was simply the most logical move. There was no way for the criminal to remove the mark that they had acquired obtaining the two objects.

They could however, try to divert attention from themselves. It was frightening, how fast the situation could turn into a witch hunt. Which, like the real thing, would never turn up any witches. Agnes nodded. That didn't help catch the thief, in fact, that would make it impossible beyond an extremely gross violation of privacy of every single women currently on campus.

"I do have a plan though. Hopefully, it ends tonight," Leo grinned. Agnes merely nodded. Of course he would. His ideas were unorthodox, without a doubt, but he had proved himself while helping to guard the princess, in his own strange way. Maybe, at the moment, unorthodox was what they needed.

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Halgenia's twin moons hanged high in the heavens, light filtering in through the windows. Leo's form was locked in slumber, safely nuzzled between the blankets. It was warm, safe, and comforting.

The latch on the window opened, followed by the window itself. Leo remained undisturbed, even as a shadow entered the room. Quietly, the shade moved across the floor, tip toeing over the stone. Slowly, two ruby rings were lowered onto the bedside table.

"Do you know how creepy it is to watch some disguised as yourself sleep?" a voice came from above the door, causing the thief to jump into the air. Before anyone could react, a large glass jar came tumbling from the shadows, breaking against the stone floor, sending it's slimy payload all over the criminal.

Try as she might, the criminal found herself stuck, as if glued down by the substance. A foul stench entered her nostrils, akin to that of dead fish. Her eyes widened with shook, as her struggle to escape became more violent. Even already, the substance was becoming translucent.

She just had a jar of sticky air thrown at her! While it's behavior was unexplainable, she was aware of the alchemical concoction. Without the presence of air, this substance was a dark brown liquid, but with it, the substance became translucent, and extremely tough. It was almost impossible to break without magic. And she couldn't reach for her wand.

"I know you probably have a few questions. Like how I'm awake with this being the third night I've gone without sleep, or how I have access to this much sticky air?" Leo slide down from his perch, looking for to Jacob, who was, unsurprisingly, still asleep. "Or how I knew you would break into this particular room in an attempt to plant incriminating evidence on me."

"All these questions are fairly easy to answer. Firstly, Caffeine, and lots of it. Second, I, in all right and legal purposes, work under Professor Colbert. You know, the teacher who's either doing his job or using the power of science to learn new things? I'm allow to borrow stuff so long as I tell him what it's for, and he approves. Thirdly, planting evidence on the person leading the efforts to investigate you is pretty smart. Immediately, everything they've told you comes into doubt," Jacob grinned, smile breaking even. "And besides, Michelle, you're responce back at the office pretty much put you at suspect number one. It's just that without proof, nobody would have believed it."

The thief's eyes widened once again, completely and utterly shocked. And she still had both rubies within her hands. There were only a few ways for things to get worse.

Of course, the rules of drama used be applied when one asks for them, and as such, the door fell, kicked inwards. Agnes had spotted the movement near on of the windows, and went to investigate. Of course, she had not expected the sight of one of her lieutenants, seemingly immobilized by an invisible substance. Of course, with both rubies still gleaming in Michelle's hands, things didn't need much further explaining.

The academy was thankful that somebody was able to capture a thief without using an extraordinarily rare magical artifact.

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And that' the end of this chapter. I know I've done some things out of order, but I hope you all enjoyed and I hope to see you next time!


	29. Flaming Assualt

As time continued to march forward, Isabella and Louise continued to remain missing. Present word had it she was finally on her way, recovering from injuries that had apparently been inflicted upon her by none other than Karin of the Heavy Wind. Yeah, that sure made the campus explode. While there were a few sceptics, the rumor of Isabella fighting her still was a boost to her reputation.

They were set to arrive by week's end, the Princess had found, before they would both be requested to join the front. Leo was aware of these, working overtime on the Zero Fighter, getting it armed and prepared, alongside finding extra supplies, and rarely, spare parts. Jacob remained unaware of this, however. Isabella and Leo were both of age to enlist in their nation's military, but Jacob would only be allowed under special circumstances.

As such, he remained unaware, quite blissfully at that, but even he couldn't ignore the clear signs of preparing for war. Part of him was worried that Isabella had already run off and joined the conflict. She was impulsive enough to do so, even more so if Louise tried to talk her into it.

Louise was protective of her friends and her country, and Isabella was protective of her friends, her family, and of course, Louise. Things would turn south for the enemy force the moment one or the other entered the battlefield. Jacob was aware his sister's short temper and self defense record, excluding the Wardes incident.

All the while, Agnes's training had become more and more intense, not just for him or Leo, but for the Musketeers under her command. Day in, day out, drills were the word of the day. The crack of firearms, the cutting of swords through all objects, noise was the name of the game.

Though Agnes seemed to be in a foul mood, she was clearly doing her best to not take it out on others. Something had happened, and it clearly hadn't gone over as well as she had hoped. Jacob knew better than to pry. Agnes's business was her business, and she would talk about when she wanted to.

But that did not mean he was spared, far from it. Between Agnes's training and Leo's desire to learn more about their abilities, his activity was maximized, with little chance to rest and recover. He had been increasingly tempted to use one of his newfound talents to slip away for a few hours to rest, but he would have to go to that place. And seeing as he was still creeped out by the dolls, or what at least what looked like and passed off as moving dolls.

Leo still had ideas about it. Summoning them as support, or dragging an opponent with him. Jacob was far less certain. Their blank eyes held a killing intent, like that he hadn't seen before. So, not only was their aid unreliable, it could easily become lethal. He desired to avoid such a thing.

Still, he desired to return home as soon as possible. His parents were worried, as parents were supposed to be, but Isabella had fallen off the radar. He didn't know anything about this "Karen of the Heavy Wind" she had apparently fought against, but that seemed to be the reason behind her delay. Each passing day made him worry more and more, and each passing day made it harder to ignore the increased militarization.

He was becoming increasingly worried that someone would launch a counter attack. No matter how one tried to spin it, that was a simple matter of time. The school was much to great and vulnerable of a target to not risk attacking. Even with the Zero fighter kept under wraps, the place had to many students to be ignored. Taking hostages would be far too easy.

He didn't sign up to be a part of this mess, and he most certainly didn't want to be here. His sister may have had no issues being a part of this insanity, but he did. All he could hope for was her swift return.

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Things, however, never went according to plan. Anyone's plan, really. It appeared Jacob's prediction for the future was correct. Very correct. That night, a group of mages had stormed the school, attacking the Musketeers and herding most of the student's and faculty into the dining hall. What they hadn't counted on were two unknown and very much annoyed variables, angry that another night to rest had just gone up in smoke.

Hit and run allowed for more about two dozen students escape to safety, while Leo and Jacob simply couldn't be pinned down by the intruders. Overextension in their pursuit allow Agnes's musketeers to pick off more enemy soldiers.

Still, with dozens of students remaining hostage, something need to be done. While Agnes rushed in to avenge the death of her guards, and provide a distraction for those under her command to extract the hostages, it was Colbert, Tabitha, and Kirche, alongside the plan of Jacob and Leo, that truly won that battle.

Kirche's magic allow one of the new devices that Leo and Colbert had been working on, an airlie flashbang grenade, so to speak, to not only take to the sky, but to detonate. Jacob knew an advantage when he saw one, and took it. Shadow classed with light, as pools of darkness formed insight of the shining light.

One for each student, and they were gone. Their eyes only had moments to adjust before they were spit back out. Going from one blinding light to complete darkness prevented any of them from seeing a thing. The only thing they did know was that their binding were cut, allowing them to run away, as Jacob leaned on his massive blade for support.

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"Agnes, catch!" Leo managed to find one of the swords on the ground, tossing it into the air.

"Everyone's out! We should pull back!" Colbert shouted, only as Tabitha and Kirche were knocked back. Leo grit his teeth, pushing the attack immediately. Spinning gears crashed into the man's guard, but he held. Leo glared, uncertain how the man was still capable to seeing. Blind?

Leo lept backwards, as flame scorched the stone where he stood. Was he seeing based on heat? Clever. The skill required to perform such a feat. He would be impressed, if it wasn't for the fact this nut was actively trying to kill them. That, and he wasn't in the mood to see if his healing abilities worked through burns. He assumed it would, but it would simply be a slower and much more painful process.

Leo was caught off guard, as the man's 'sword' wand, which would be more accurately called a mace, impacted his hammer while in midair. The blow reverated up his arms, knocking him back. Crimson flame launched in pursuit, attempting to incinerate him.

Pure blue flame, launched past Leo, intercepting the attack. As magic as both attacks were, they were still flame, and they had to obey its rules. Blue overcame red with ease, it's raw power more than enough to overwhelm it.

Leo knew exactly the source. He hadn't preved into Colbert's past, but he knew the fire mage was on a whole other level compared to his contemporaries. The fact he could generate blue flame, on top of his square class statis, only drove this home.

"Step away from my students," normally, Colbert's voice would be warm, full of kindness and compassion. Now, it full of cold, brutal rage. Even Leo felt a chill go up his spine due to his tone. Leo pushed backwards, taking advantage of the fact he was no longer under concentrated assault.

Thankfully, Jacob had extracted the hostages, and almost everyone else had vacated the area. The man seemed annoyed that someone else had stepped in, before a look realization washed over his face.

"It's you!" he shouted, grinning like a maniac, "This is the temperature I've been searching for! Captain!" Leo paused. Captain? What exactly did he mean by that? If he meant what he thought it meant, then this was bad, in more ways than one. He didn't have the full picture, but his faith in Colbert felt rocked to the core.

And all of that was said in front of the very worst person to say it in front of. Agnes became enraged. In a single moment, all reason was lost to the screaming flame of vengeance. As they dueled, Agnes approached, in spite of intensity of the crimson and blue fire being fired between both combatants.

"Agnes, don't!" Leo shouted, trying to warn her of the attack she had just opened herself up to. It wasn't until the fire was upon her that she realized her error. Colbert attempt to intercept the attack, to knock her aside and off of the spell's path. This time, shadow knocked him aside, as Agnes was swallowed. Jacob took her place.

Flames slammed into his body, igniting hair and burning flame. His screams of agony echoed across the courtyard, before the fire finally fell away. He was alive, if for no other reason than his regeneration, but his skin was darkened and burned. Leo knelt beside him, unsure to what to do. He needed to get Jacob out of here, but how? He was in no shape to move. And the burns were everywhere, his body nothing more than a third degree at least. Even now, Jacob's flesh struggled to stitch itself together.

"Now, die," the man shouted, leveling his weapon, only for the flame at the tip to sputter and fade. It was only then did Leo sense heat's retreat, as ice began form on the walls. The temperature was dropping, and in some parts of the room, had already dropped below freezing. Heavy metal boots clanked against the floor as a familiar, if distorted voice spoke.

"No. It is you that is about to die."

Isabella had returned.

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Sorry for such a short chapter guys. I promise that the next one will be longer. I hope everyone enjoyed, and ideally I'll see you next time!


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